


Angels Deserve To Die

by Night_the_Dragon



Category: Septiplier - Fandom, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alpha!Mark, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Angel Hunting, Anal Sex, Beta!OC, Blood and Violence, Come Inflation, Demon Allies, Friendship, Kissing, Knotting, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Mating Bites, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mpreg, Omega!Jack, Protectiveness, Sexual Content, Smut, Trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:54:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27093865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Night_the_Dragon/pseuds/Night_the_Dragon
Summary: Blood was spattered across the monster's body, its sharp teeth showing as it opened its jaws to kill him. Mark could only watch, frozen in fear and horror at what was happening. Without warning, the creature screeched in pain, backing away quickly as it writhed from a sudden strike to it. It clawed frantically at an arrow stuck in its scaly flank. It didn’t get the chance to, as someone appeared from nowhere and slashed the monster’s arm clean off with a knife. White liquid sprayed from the wound as it turned on the man who had attacked it.The man slammed his hands on the ground, sending a current of electricity along the earth and shocking the beast. Suddenly, a silver streak shot at it stopping a split second from full contact, shooting fire at the creature. Another man rushed in beside the first, two handguns held firmly in his hands, firing at the monster and shooting it in the head, killing it. The second man turned to Mark as he holstered his guns at his hips.“Are yeh okay?” he asked.“W…what the fuck was that thing…?” Mark managed to get out.“An angel."“Like a fallen one?”“No. That was a real angel, and they’ve been killin’ for a while now.”
Relationships: Darkiplier/Antisepticeye, Mark Fischbach/Sean McLoughlin, Septiplier, Slight Danti
Comments: 27
Kudos: 30





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I absolutely LOVE fics where I can have fighting involved, and I mean full combat, not arguments. I feel like I suck at writing fighting scenes because I don’t make them long enough, but hey. This is a good fic for this month because of the Halloween season, and I actually got inspired to write this while listening to “Chop Suey!”, a song Jack has done a drum cover on, and I actually watched/listened to the video because MilayaMilenZeal sent it to me and told me to, lol. So, the title is based on a lyric from that song. But before you read, I have a few little things I need to let you lovely readers know of ahead of time.  
> 1.) This fic will have four OC’s of mine in it, plus some additional ones that are JUST for this fic.  
> 2.) I literally have over 2 pages for the official summary for this, unlike any other fic idea I’ve had. I’ve never written a story-planning summary that long before, even for my other pairings.  
> 3.) Finally, this will be primarily 3rd person POV from Jack’s POV, but I had to start with Mark for this first part. I have a tendency to shift the POV focus between characters, but I’ll mainly stick to Jack.  
> Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story, Shadow, Night, Shixona, and Obscurum.

Blood covered the glowing monster’s jaws and spattered across its body, its gleaming, sharp teeth showing as it opened its jaws to kill him. Mark could only watch, frozen in fear and horror from where he was trapped against a wall on the ground at what was happening and his imminent death. He was completely terrified, grief flooding him from the memory of seeing his mother and brother slaughtered by this horrible beast.

Without warning, the creature screeched in pain, backing away quickly as it writhed from a sudden strike to it. It clawed frantically at an arrow stuck in its scaly flank, trying to dislodge the object. It didn’t get the chance to, as someone appeared from nowhere and slashed the monster’s arm clean off with a knife. It bellowed in agony, glowing white liquid spraying from the wound as it turned on the man who had attacked it.

The man slammed his hands on the ground a short distance from it, sending a current of electricity along the earth and shocking the beast into paralysis. Suddenly, a silver streak shot at it, not seeming the least bit bothered by the electrical charge, before stopping a split second from full contact, unleashing a jet of silver flames at the creature. Even with it stuck by the electricity, it struggled to escape the flames the silver thing had shot at it.

Another man rushed in beside the first, a crossbow strapped to his back and two handguns held firmly in his hands, firing at the monster and shooting it in the head, abruptly silencing its noises. The second man was breathing a little harder than was normal, before turning to Mark as he holstered his guns at his hips.

“Are yeh okay?” he asked worriedly. His accent was clearly Irish, surprising Mark.

“W…what the fuck was that thing…?” Mark managed to get out, still pretty shaken from what had just happened.

“An angel,” the man replied, glancing at the silver streak as it glided over and landed on the shoulder guard on his left shoulder. The streak actually was some sort of reptilian creature, almost like a dragon.

“Like a fallen one?” the red-haired man frowned, making the first guy snort from where he stood, cleaning the white liquid from his knife. The gun-wielding man rolled his eyes at the other before looking back to Mark.

“No. That was a real angel, and they’ve been killin’ for a while now,” was the soft answer. Mark jolted, his eyes wide as he looked up at the other in complete shock. It almost didn’t seem to register, the shock of that information, combined with what had happened to his family and almost to him…

“We should get to safety. Seems like he’s…” the silver reptile on the man’s shoulder warned, his low, smooth voice trailing off as Mark shuddered harshly and keened, pain flooding him all at once and from no particular spot.

“Shit, yer right,” the man growled, ruffling his green-dyed hair. He glanced at the other man, then at his silver companion.

“I’m on it,” the reptile nodded, hopping down. Mark couldn’t remember anything after that, going unconscious from the pain.

X*X*X*X*X*X*X

“Easy, fuckin’ hell!” a voice spat in warning in response to a pair of growls close to Mark as he came to. He didn’t alert them to his conscious state just quite yet, though. It sounded like the man’s voice from before, but…slightly distorted, almost like it was coming through a speaker.

“We wouldn’t hurt him, you should know that,” the voice of the reptile said calmly. “ _Especially_ you, Shadow.”

“Sorry, first instinct…” a new voice apologized. Now there was one growl, but it had quieted significantly.

“Dark, you know damn well we have the same fuckin’ goal,” the knife-wielding man grumbled. “Stop growlin’, ya dumbass.” The growling finally ceased then, followed by a small huff. It was quiet, other than the sounds of breathing and a fire crackling.

“…Seems our new friend is awake,” the reptile commented after a small pause. Rustling was heard as someone moved from some blankets, it seemed, to come to Mark’s side.

“Hey, no need to be afraid of us. You’re safe here,” the man who had spoken before murmured soothingly, placing a gentle hand on the red-haired man’s shoulder. Mark finally opened his eyes, squinting a bit from the light of the fire. The Irishman carefully helped Mark into a sitting position, thanking his lookalike when he handed him a water bottle.

“Think you can drink some water?” Mark nodded slowly in response, accepting the offered bottle and drinking a few swigs before capping it again. His gaze swept over the area he was in, taking in his surroundings.

They were in a large room in some sort of abandoned building, the only way in being a broken-down wall. It was dark outside, faint moonlight filtering in from a broken window the had a tattered curtain over it.

The silver reptilian creature from earlier was perched on the back of an old chair that looked like it would fall apart any moment. His eyes watched him closely with an analytical look to them, his vertical pupils appearing cloudy black. His irises and sclera were both a slightly darker shade of silver than his armor.

An identical black creature was standing by Mark’s side, watching him worriedly. Unlike the silver one, its eyes were completely black, with no sign of visible pupils. Sometimes it would glance at the silver one as though in silent question before looking back at Mark.

The knife-wielding man from earlier had seated himself on a beaten-up couch in the room, his intent gaze watching Mark. His hair was a darker shade of green compared to the Irishman beside him. His left eye was a bright, almost glowing green, while the right was a crystalline blue. The black t-shirt he wore was covered by a dark, forest-green jacket, and navy-blue jeans covered his lower half. He had a cut along his throat that appeared to have healed over, mostly covered by a black choker. He soon shifted his attention to playing with his studded wristbands.

Another man stood close behind the black reptile, watching Mark with an indiscernible look to his dark gaze. He was almost a mirror image of Mark himself, with a few differences. His skin was pale compared to Mark, his hair the same black it had been before Mark had dyed his, and his brown eyes were darker, as though he had experienced many terrible things in his life. He wore a black dress suit with a white undershirt, and a pair of matching dress shoes. While in Mark’s peripheral, his doppelganger had a red and blue outline to his figure.

“I’ll bet yeh have a lot of questions,” the Irishman by his side said sympathetically, moving to sit next to him, his back against the wall. That made Mark realize his crossbow was in the corner, propped up with his holstered guns beside it. “I’ll at least start by givin’ ya my name. I’m Jack.”

“Technically it’s Seán,” the silver reptile quipped with a small smirk.

“Night, I prefer bein’ called Jack, and you know why,” the green-haired man muttered, glaring at ‘Night’ briefly, who merely shrugged. “Sorry ‘bout him… He’s a cheeky one.”

“Who are you all? What even happened?” Mark questioned, thoroughly confused and then some by this point.

“Well, for starters, that’s Anti on the couch there,” Jack said, gesturing to him. “You know Night now, and the other two…”

“My name is Shadow, and this is Dark,” the black reptile answered, pointing at the man behind him with his tail.

“My name’s Mark,” the red-haired man finished.

“Before I tell you too much more about who they all are, I’ll explain what happened,” the Irishman sighed, running his fingers through his hair. “Sorry, just…hate relivin’ it…”

“Huh?”

“You remember that creature from before, and how I said it was an angel, right?” Jack said instead. At Mark’s nod, he continued, “That’s how they really look. They’re not humans with feathered wings like we always believed.”

“The deception they used to cover that farce was immense,” Dark muttered.

“Definitely…” the smaller man agreed. “Anyway, they’ve been slowly attackin’ humans for a while now, startin’ in Australia and Asia, and movin’ their way west. When they reached Ireland two years ago, I was 24. My whole family was killed when those monsters arrived, and my mother somehow managed to hide me in the cellar in time, orderin’ me to stay there until it was clear. I did as I was told, but I could still hear them bein’ slaughtered…”

“Oh fuck…” Mark breathed, horrified. Guilt washed over him at the grief in the other’s voice.

“…I ended up passin’ out, like you did earlier, and when I came ‘round, I had Anti and Night tendin’ to me,” Jack mumbled. “They explained everythin’. Angels and demons have been fightin’ for eons, and contrary to the stories sayin’ demons are evil and whatever, it’s actually the angels. Demons don’t bother with humans ‘cause they never care to. Problem with the angels comin’ to the human world is that demons can’t do the same without a tether to a human partner. They’re more than happy to help fight back, since that’ll result in peace for them.”

“And we’ve been at war with the gobshites for as long as I can remember…” Anti grumbled, and what appeared to be pixels started drifting quickly from his frame, seeming to react to his annoyance.

“Yeah…” the Irishman sighed. “The reason I have Anti and Night is because when a human experiences intense grief and trauma at the same time, they gain a demon partner. Night’s not a demon, he’s a dragon, but he appeared with Anti, apparently. I don’t remember since I was out cold. I’m incredibly grateful to have both their help, though.”

“I’d like to think so,” Night chuckled softly, shuffling a bit in place and stretching his slender wings out in the process before folding them again.

“Seems it was the same for you, though,” the smaller man commented, gesturing to Shadow. “None of the other angel hunters I’ve come across since leavin’ Ireland have had more than just their demon partner.”

“And their weapons,” Anti chimed in with a short laugh.

“True,” Jack smiled slightly. “Won’t get far without one.”

“Speaking of which… Do you have any experience with any sort of weapons?” Shadow inquired.

“No… Never needed to…” Mark admitted.

“It’s no trouble. We’ll figure somethin’ out,” the Irishman shrugged. “I got my guns and their ammo from my dad’s gun safe when I left, and the crossbow we’d had mounted in our family cabin for years. Had to clean it up a bit, but it works great now.”

“For fuck’s sake, Dark, speak up, would ya? I hate when you look like ya wanna pipe up, but keep yer mouth shut,” Anti snapped at the other demon suddenly.

“Always so blunt,” Dark snorted. “I may be able to craft something for you to wield capably.”

“What would we need, though?” Jack frowned.

“Not much. A simple hunt for materials in the area,” the demon answered simply.

“As vague as fuckin’ ever…” Anti groaned. “He means metals, and probably scrap metal.”

“Did you two know each other in hell or something?” Mark inquired, curious now because of their familiarity when they spoke to each other.

“Yeh, how could I not know ‘bout this ego-puffin’ shit?” the knife-wielding demon huffed. “He’s only about 100 years older than me, but he’s got a lot of power to him. More than me, much as I hate ta admit it…”

“And I’ve yet to be reborn, too,” Dark smirked.

“I know that!” Anti spat. “At least when I was reborn, I got a better form.”

“Huh?” Mark uttered, confused.

“Demons are reborn, not created from human spirits like you were led to believe. Human spirits don’t go to either heaven or hell among us,” Dark answered. “They go to a different version of either, and aren’t ruled over like angels and demons are. And while the angels’ leader merely creates his angels, we demons are reborn. In the beginning, demons weren’t, but The Demon Lord saw fit to change that, resulting in us becoming more powerful over time, even after dying.”

“And when I was last reborn, I came back around the time humans first developed technology, and encountered a virus while gainin’ a physical form,” Anti added. “In the process, I gained new abilities. I’m literally a demon computer virus.”

“Indeed you are, Glitch,” the other demon chuckled softly.

“Watch it, Dark,” the knife-wielder warned dangerously.

“Would you two knock it off?!” Shadow yelled. He calmed down quickly, though. “This isn’t the time to argue.”

“Exactly. We need to focus on regrouping for now,” Night nodded.

“For now, we’ll rest, okay?” Jack suggested, looking at Mark for approval.

“Y…yeah…” the red-haired man agreed quietly. Jack watched him worriedly for a moment, then glanced at Night for a split second. That seemed to tell him enough, though.

“Let’s split up to take watch and hunt,” he told the others. “Anti and I can go hunt, and Shadow, you and Dark can stay close here to keep watch.

“Gotcha,” Shadow said, and then they all left the large room. Once alone, Jack relaxed more, slumping against the wall.

“Figured you and I could use some time without the tension,” he murmured. “Night’s got telepathy, but he doesn’t pry. He just uses it in these kinda situations and when we’re out.”

“…”

“I’m sorry this even happened to you…” the Irishman whispered. “I would never wish this pain on anyone. It fuckin’ sucks, and it’s even worse when you have no one with you to understand.” Mark looked at the smaller man out of the corner of his eyes, and he soon felt guilty.

“Thank you…” he said softly. “You saved me from being killed, and even brought me to safety after I passed out. You didn’t have to, either.”

“I’d like to think someone would do the same for me,” Jack smiled slightly. He inhaled deeply, held it, then let out the breath as a sigh, but then paused. “…You’re an alpha, huh?”

“Yeah, the build gives me away more often than not,” Mark chuckled.

“Coulda fooled me. Some of the alphas I knew in Ireland were just tall, not toned,” the green-haired man replied. “I’m a beta, myself.”

“Ah, okay… Hey Jack?”

“Hm?”

“How come you prefer being called Jack?”

“…Even though my birth name is Seán, I prefer to be called Jack because it was a nickname my mother gave me as I was growin’ up. It’s a little way for me to keep a memory of her with me… Like how I have my dad’s guns…” Jack mumbled.

“That’s a good way to keep her memory alive, though,” Mark told him honestly. “Never had a nickname myself, to be honest.”

“We’ll fix that at some point,” the beta quipped, his voice sounding lighter already. A yawn escaped him, and he stretched his arms over his head. Once he’d lowered them again, relaxing, he looked at Mark, moving to stand up. “Let’s get some sleep while we can. I dunno how easy it’ll be for them to hunt right now, considering the angels’ recent attack, so we should take advantage while we can.”

“Sounds good,” the alpha grinned tiredly, getting up and starting to go to the couch.

“There’s a bed over here, ya doof,” Jack laughed, gesturing Mark over. “We’ll be able ta share warmth this way. ‘Sides, the couch sucks, accordin’ ta Anti.”

“He sleeps on it?” Mark asked.

“He just rests on it, but demons are able to revert into their partner’s mind to recover or sleep,” the green-haired man explained as he crawled under the blanket. “Makes it easier for Anti to be hidden if needed. Night just sleeps where he wants, and can shapeshift into animals to disguise himself or hide.”

“Different,” the red-haired man remarked as he did the same, getting comfortable.

“Takes some gettin’ used to, but you’ll be fine,” Jack assured, settling in place and closing his eyes. “Get some sleep, Mark. See you when we get up.”

“See you, Jack,” Mark replied, doing the same. Both men soon fell asleep, Mark from mental and emotional exhaustion, and Jack from the exertion of fighting earlier. It would be a long and difficult path ahead of them, but they would manage, together.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY SHIT. I didn't expect to make this chapter 12 pages, but hey, I ain't complaining! That's actually twice as long as chapter 1. XD  
> Something I want to explain is that if a line/sentence is both italicized and in bold, it’s one of the demons speaking within their partner’s mind while reverted.

When Jack woke up, it was to Night gently nudging him awake.

“Hey, it’s morning,” the small dragon told him, backing away as the Irishman sat up with a grunt.

“Wha…?”

“We took longer so Anti could work off the extra energy he’d worked himself up with when he got mad with Dark before,” Night explained. “But we have food ready now.”

“Something smells good…” Mark mumbled next to him, yawning once his eyes were open.

“I’d like to think so,” Shadow laughed lightly. “Pheasant’s a juicy meat to have.”

“Definitely,” Night chuckled softly, going over to the two demons and Shadow. By the time the two humans had managed to set up from the bed and join them, Night already had a bowl of food ready for them each.

“Ever the caretaker,” Shadow teased.

“You know how I am,” the silver dragon replied evenly.

“I never got ta ask before, but do you two know each other, then?” Jack asked as he sat down, accepting the offered bowl.

“Yeah! I’m his twin brother,” the black dragon grinned, before the expression fell. “Don’t know exactly what all happened as to how we ended up here, but I’m guessing something skewed the dimensions and shit.”

“What do you mean?” Dark frowned, actually seeming confused for once.

“For us, we have no way to move between worlds and whatnot,” Night answered moving so he was leaning back, propped against a wall and closing his eyes. “Our home was created an eon ago or so by our ancestors to protect us from humans who hunted us. In the process, they made it so no one could come or go. We never had any desire to come here as it was. But someone must have toyed with the dimensions or something related like it was nothing, hence us ending up here.”

“Weird…” Mark mumbled around his mouthful.

“So, what’s on the agenda fer today?” Jack asked after eating a few bites.

“Best ta get started on searchin’ fer the scrap metal pieces for whatever weapon Darkiboo here’s gonna make Mark,” Anti advised, giggling wickedly at Dark’s glower thrown at him.

“Do _not_ call me that,” he warned, the red and blue that seemed to line his form crackling in agitation. Jack sighed heavily, rubbing at his temples.

“We don’t need you two gettin’ in a spat like this so much,” he grumbled. “Maybe you guys should get your frustrations out now instead of pushin’ each other’s buttons so much.”

“I just like ta push the fun ones,” Anti grinned cheekily.

“I know you do, but obviously Dark ain’t havin’ it. Just hold off until we’re done eatin’,” the Irishman said firmly. As he focused back on his food, he felt Night’s familiar brush against his mind, seeking permission. The green-haired man nodded minutely, and then the connection linked.

‘ _You haven’t told Mark the truth, have you?_ ’ the dragon asked.

‘ _No, no one knows but you and Anti now,_ ’ Jack confirmed.

‘ _Good thing you used a suppressant injection shortly before we arrived in Ohio, then,_ ’ Night hummed.

‘ _Yeah… I know omegas are rarer these days, and hence more valued, but no need to flaunt my second gender,_ ’ the Irishman sighed.

‘I understand,’ the reptilian creature murmured, before withdrawing.

‘ _Don’t need him knowin’… Least, not yet,_ ’ Jack thought to himself. Male omegas were even rarer than females, so he was one of the few. He also didn’t want to worry about seeking out an alpha or having a heat during this whole ordeal. Piss-poor timing, really.

“You okay, Jack?” Mark asked suddenly, his concern clear as he looked at the smaller man.

“Yeah, I’m fine! Sorry, was just thinkin’,” he assured the alpha with an apologetic smile. “Tryin’ to figure out where we can go for everythin’ for the time bein’.”

“Doesn’t seem like too bad of an area,” Shadow piped up. “We could probably manage to hang out in this area for a bit before moving on.”

“Plenty of resources in the vicinity, too,” Night added, opening one eye before closing it again. “Prey is plentiful here, and there’s a small river less than a mile away. Plus, with the rubble from the angels’ attack, there’s bound to be more than enough scrap metal.”

“Seems like we’ll have plenty ta keep busy with, then,” Jack nodded. “Once you two have scrapped and gotten over whatever has your asses in a damn bunch, that is,” he added, looking firmly at Anti and Dark in turn.

“Are you sure it’s a good idea for them to fight…?” Mark frowned.

“They’ll be fine. Anti tends to get a lot of energy and needs to burn it off somehow, whether it be by runnin’, fightin’, whatever,” the smaller man assured him.

“Perks of bein’ a demonic computer virus,” Anti snickered, making Dark roll his eyes.

“Well, let’s get this over with,” Jack shrugged once he’d swallowed the last bite of his food, pushing himself off the floor. Mark did the same, smiling in amusement as he saw Shadow hanging upside down from a shelf.

“You’re a fun one, huh?” he commented.

“Considering I don’t have to worry about being a leader here, why not?” the black dragon quipped, letting himself drop and land on Mark’s shoulder as he passed underneath.

“You were a leader back in your guys’ home?” the Irishman questioned, surprised.

“Yes. He was the leader of our clan, and he was one of the more powerful ones out of the five clans,” Night confirmed, mouth quirking in a smirk as he added, “Even with the level of responsibility he had, he always tried to have some sort of fun daily.”

“Hard to imagine him being a leader, to be honest,” the alpha chuckled, laughing at Shadow’s dismayed shout. “It’s just ironic how you and Dark are opposites of Night and Anti.”

“What?” Jack frowned.

“Night and Dark are both more stoic, calm people, while Shadow and Anti are energetic and fun-loving,” Mark explained.

“Hah! Yer right,” the omega laughed. “Funny how it worked out that way.”

“Never thought of it that way, to be honest,” Night hummed, waiting until Jack had his shoulder guard back on before pushing away from the wall and jumping up onto the guard to perch there.

“We’ll probably wanna figure out some sorta paddin’ for your shoulder if Shadow’s gonna perch there,” Jack told Mark as they all headed outside. “Otherwise those claws of his can leave ya feelin’ sore. Trust me.”

“He’s speaking from experience,” the silver dragon snickered. Shadow snorted, unimpressed, which made his twin glare at him. “Hey, I can’t help tightening my grip before launching myself off whatever I’m perched on.”

“You’re all gonna give me a headache in no time at this rate…” Jack grumbled before Shadow could reply. Once outside, Anti grinned.

“Looks like rain’s comin’ in,” he quipped, a bit of pep to his step as he led them to a good area for him and Dark to fight. Dark rolled his eyes in response, but followed after, the two humans and their dragons trailing after.

Upon reaching a good area with enough space to move around and not trip over roots or stones or whatever, but also plenty of coverage, Anti took a spot on one end, Dark on the other. Jack sat on a nearby rock, Mark seating himself on a tree stump next to him. A tree with a massive trunk gave them a place to lean back against.

“I’ll be honest, I’m interested to see how Dark fights,” the green-haired man admitted softly.

“I wouldn’t know, but we’ll see,” Night murmured.

Anti summoned a pair of knives into his hands, gripping them with such ease and confidence that Mark could easily tell he was quite familiar with their use. Dark, however, merely watched him with a cold calm to him, his hands in his pockets. As if on cue, lightning flashed briefly, the brightness of it lighting up Dark’s ashen skin for a moment, and thunder rumbled across the sky.

When the thunder faded away, Anti vanished with a static-like motion, before reappearing behind Dark and shouting in his ear, rather than striking. He disappeared again immediately after when Dark whirled around, this time popping up on Dark’s right, where his fringe covered his eye and partially obscured his vision. The glitch slashed at him with one of his knives, cutting open the cloth of his sleeves and leaving a bleeding gash in its wake. Anti vanished again before Dark could retaliate, a shadowy tendril shooting up from the ground where Anti previously stood, coiling around empty space.

“Because he’s a computer virus made into a demon, he can ‘glitch’, which is his version of teleporting, but only for short distances,” Jack explained quietly when he sensed Mark’s confusion.

“You damned glitch,” Dark snarled as Anti reappeared, cackling.

“Got your suit messed up pretty good, didn’t I?” the younger demon taunted, his sclera turning black and fangs now visible in his mouth when he grinned.

“Seems he’s not taking chances,” Night commented. Jack nodded minutely when he caught the side glance, and he felt the connection Night made to himself and Mark with his telepathy.

‘ _Dun worry, Night’s got telepathy. Good way ta communicate without others noticin’,_ ’ Jack assured the alpha when he saw him tense. ‘ _I’d rather not talk a bunch and break their focus._ ’

‘ _What I meant by my previous statement was that Anti, as well as other demons, can enhance themselves with the demonic energy to make their reflexes and senses sharper, and give them a power boost,_ ’ the silver dragon elaborated once the red-haired man relaxed again. ‘ _Problem with that is it drains them a bit faster than without using it, so it’s not a good idea for long fights._ ’

Their attention was quickly refocused when Anti gave a pained shout as Dark struck him with a burst of red energy fired from his hand.

“You fuckin’ asshole…!” he hissed, glaring.

“That would just be a mere taste of what you deserve,” the older demon growled back, his own sclera turning black and one of his fangs showing as he sneered.

“I call bullshit on that,” Anti spat, twirling his knives briefly and tightening his grip on their handles before glitching into a strike on Dark once more. Dark seemed to learn and then anticipate where Anti would appear to attack, and he began to deflect and counter the blows. Because of that, he started to land multiple jabs and punches to Anti. He even slashed at him with that red light covering his hand, acting as a blade.

As he glitched around again and again, the first drops of rain were felt by the humans and dragons, and it didn’t take long for the rain to go from light to heavy.

Shadow’s tail flicked in a small sweeping motion, and then the branches of the tree behind them extended to hang over them, leaves sprouting from them in multiple, various places to provide cover from the rain. Mark looked up, surprised, and Jack chuckled softly at the expression.

‘ _It’s one of the elements we can control,_ ’ Night explained. ‘ _Shadow and I can control nature, fire, water, electricity, earth, ice, wind, light, and darkness._ ’

Mark nodded, a sense of awe in his mind that Night let Jack feel through the connection. They all jumped, though, when lightning flashed across the sky. Anti grinned wickedly when thunder boomed above them, signaling how close it was.

The next bolt of lightning struck close to the glitch, and he wasted no time. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, Anti pointed his knives at the lightning, and it siphoned into him, the metal of the blades acting as conductors. A high-pitched buzzing noise filled the air as the flashing electricity died down then ceased completely.

Anti was slumped over, breathing heavily, the tips of his knives digging into the dirt. The charge the lightning had left in the air was thick, an occasional buzz or spark appearing here and there. Dark was tense, his gaze watching every motion from Anti closely. Suddenly, the younger demon froze…before vanishing without warning.

The older demon stiffened at that, swiftly moving into a defensive position, readying himself for attack. Wispy, obsidian tendrils coiled at his feet, rising from the ground in preparation to move. The blue and red outlines of his form were more visible, the red seemingly more prominent.

Out of nowhere, electricity crackled along the ground in a ring around Dark, closing in. The ashen-skinned demon snarled, making the shadows expand to consume the sparks as they approached. His focus was on that, making sure he didn’t get shocked…and that was enough.

A deafening crash of lightning shot down from above, striking Dark and drawing a choked scream from him. In the center of the pillar of lightning was Anti, knives pointing straight down and digging into Dark’s back, starting to draw blood. At the sight of the blood, Jack knew it was enough.

“Anti!” he yelled, standing up. “That’s enough! You won!”

The glitch paused momentarily, but leaped away, the electricity fading as he focused. Once he’d dismissed his knives, his sclera returned to white and his fangs retracting. Anti stumbled a little as he approached Dark, pressing a hand to his left side from the tenderness of a blow the older demon had landed on him.

Dark was on his hands and knees, breathing harshly from the pain of the assault. The wounds from Anti’s knives had already stopped bleeding and healed over, but that didn’t mean the pain was completely gone.

Jack watched as his demon reached Mark’s, waiting until he got the older demon’s attention before holding out a hand to help him up. After a few seconds, Dark nodded minutely, taking Anti’s hand and letting him tug him to his feet. Granted, the ashen-skinned demon staggered briefly, but managed to stay standing.

“Holy shit, how are you not more hurt?!” Mark yelped once the two rejoined the four on the side. Jack laughed at the incredulous tone the alpha used, grinning.

“They’re demons, dude. They’ve fought angels before, and they’re fuckin’ strong demons, too,” he pointed out.

“Damn straight,” Anti smirked. “All the demons we came across with their human partners over the past two years were much younger than Dark and me. Strong, but not nearly as experienced or powerful as us.”

“There are still more powerful demons in hell, Anti,” Dark pointed out, but he was smirking, too.

“I know, I know,” the glitch demon groaned. “None of us are able to top The Demon Lord, ‘cept maybe Obscurum…”

“I’m assuming you haven’t heard anything of her presence here?” the older demon frowned. “My auras haven’t had enough time to try and detect any familiar presences.”

“Not a thing.”

“Who’s Obscurum?” Jack questioned, curious.

“The only demon dragon to exist, and she’s almost as old as The Demon Lord herself,” Dark answered. “She even trained her how to fight. She’s incredibly powerful.”

“Sounds like a great ally in this fight,” the Irishman remarked, before shivering lightly at the chill from the rain.

“We’d best head back to that old house until the rain lessens at least some,” Night said.

“I’ll second that,” Mark nodded, starting to head back. As they began to make their way back to the abandoned house, Jack could feel the silver dragon relaxing where he was perched on his shoulder.

They were about 10 yards away when Night stiffened sharply, growling low and vicious in his chest. He turned his head, his pupils flicking about to try and figure out where the danger was coming from.

“What is it?” Jack demanded.

“I’ll give you three guesses, and I’m sure you know the answer,” was the rumbled reply.

No one got the chance to answer, as what appeared to be a mass of feathers shot down from above, nearly crashing into the ground. When Jack lowered his arm from shielding his face, the feathers straightened out as wings, before unfolding to reveal a large golden ring with a single eye floating within it. The ring had more eyeballs lining the outside of the band, and each one blinked in unison.

“Fuckin’ dammit…!” Anti hissed, glaring at the angel. “Piss poor timin’, ya fuck!”

“Yeah, really!” the Irishman growled. Thinking quick, he started dishing out orders. “Anti, Dark, you both need ta recover. Revert for now. Shadow, you have to stay with Mark and keep him safe. Night, it’s you and me.”

With little hesitation, the two demons did as told, disappearing from sight. Meanwhile, Shadow quickly guided Mark to cover behind a pile of chopped wood that had been meant for the house’s fireplace by the original occupants. Night jumped down from Jack’s shoulder as he pulled his crossbow from his back, baring his teeth with a snarl and lashing his tail angrily.

“This’ll be a tough one,” the omega warned the silver dragon.

“I won’t argue that, but we don’t have much of a choice,” Night replied, keeping his voice low. “Mark has no weapon to fight with, and even if he did, he hasn’t been trained yet.”

Rather than reply, Jack waited for the angel to make the first move, keeping an eye on each movement it made. When it seemed to realize its prey wasn’t going to strike first, it gave a shrill screech and charged at the green-haired man.

It didn’t get its chance, as Jack raised his crossbow and fired, the steel arrow hitting its mark in the eye inside the ring. As the arrowhead buried into the pupil, another screech sounded from it, this one a bit deeper, but louder this time, as glowing white blood spray from around the wound. A burst of light radiated from the outside of the ring, blinding the Irishman and causing spots to dance across his vision.

An enraged snarl erupted from close to him, before a crash sounding like metal scraping on metal followed. When Jack’s vision finally cleared, it was just in time to see Night slashing at the eyes on the band, sufficiently drawing the angel’s attention from the human.

“Heads up!” the omega shouted, yanking his handguns from their holsters and firing at the remaining eyes. The dragon darted away, avoiding the shots in the nick of time. As soon as he was on the ground, though, darker metal bands burst from beneath him, wrapping around his limbs, torso, and neck to trap him on the ground.

“Fuck…!” Night grit out, struggling. “It’s iron!”

“What?!” Jack gasped. He knew Night’s strength was drained by iron, and prolonged exposure could kill him, so he had no time to lose. Running to a fallen tree and dashing along it like a ramp, he fired three more arrows from his crossbow, each one sticking in the angel’s main eye.

‘ ** _How the fuckin’ shit did they find out about his weakness?!_** ’ Anti growled in Jack’s mind.

‘ _I have no damn clue right now, but we have more pressin’ shit goin’ on right now,_ ’ the human pointed out. ‘ _Any ideas on how I can kill this fucker without a sword? Cuz I don’t have one, and that’d probably be the best method with this one._ ’

‘ ** _I got nothin’, but just keep your guard up,_** ’ the demon cautioned. And that’s what Jack did.

The omega was forced to dodge rays of light from the angel’s injured eyes, a red beam from the main eye’s iris, and blades of wind from the feathers. Jack fired with his guns when he was able, but those moments were becoming fewer as the fight went on. He could feel his stamina draining, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to avoid being hit.

Then Jack got knocked over by the wind attack, crying out when a few of the blades pierced through his left leg completely. Fortunately, they missed the bone, but still. Jack scrambled into a sitting position, flinching at the pain shooting through his leg as he tried to keep an eye on the angel. It screeched loudly, preparing to deal the fatal strike, and the Irishman closed his eyes tightly, bracing himself for the attack.

“ **JACK!!** ” Mark’s voice screamed in a panic.

A sudden flare of intense heat hit Jack instead, the angel’s shrieks of agony accompanying it. Opening his icy blue eyes, the omega was shocked to see flames as black as pitch consuming the angel as it struggled to escape them.

“Not so tough now, huh?” a woman’s voice taunted, before the blade of a sword (and not just any sword, a fucking _katana_ ) sliced through the ring and the eye within, the flames arching and curving to make way for it. The slash killed it instantly, and it dropped heavily to the ground, its white blood losing the glow it would typically have.

Jack was shocked, admittedly a bit shaken from his close call with death, but managed to look at the owner of the katana as she withdrew the blade and stepped around the corpse. She wiped the blood off with a cloth at her hip and sheathed it before going over to him.

“You okay?” she asked kindly, dropping down to crouch in front of him. The green-haired man snapped out of his stunned state so he could answer.

“I’ll be fine once this shite heals,” he replied, gesturing to his injured leg.

“Oooh, yeah, you’re not walking much anytime too soon, I’d say,” the woman sighed, before looking up as a dragon approached, Night unconscious in her clawed hands. “Is that one okay?”

“He is. Seems the iron sapped his energy enough to knock him out,” the dragon answered, but she sounded vaguely confused by that. She glanced at Jack, then to the woodpile where Mark and Shadow were, and then her black, vertical pupils refocusing back on the woman. “These two aren’t the only ones, though.”

“Friends of yours?” the woman asked Jack, brushing a few stray strands of brown hair from her face.

“Yeh, they’re friends,” he nodded, before calling out to them. “Mark, Shadow, coast is clear!”

The alpha rushed over before Shadow, his expression worried as all hell as he literally skid to his knees in his haste to reach Jack’s side. As Shadow got close, he whimpered at the sight of his twin out cold.

‘ ** _Oh, you gotta be fuckin’ kiddin’ me!!_** ’ Anti shouted in Jack’s mind, before emerging. Dark did the same, and for once, he looked honestly shocked. “When the fuck did you get a partner?!”

“Well, you should have expected me to get one regardless, Anti,” the dragon practically purred. “After all, I’m the best asset hell has next to The Demon Lord herself.”

“I would have expected you to have one sooner, then, if that’s the case,” Dark frowned heavily.

“…Okay, there’s way more to this all than I know, and I think we should connect the dots, but let’s get somewhere safe first, yeah?” the woman suggested. “Mark, was it?”

“Yeah?” the red-haired man nodded.

“Would you be able to carry him? I don’t think he’ll be able to manage walking very well on his own right now,” she questioned. Mark nodded, carefully scooping Jack up in his arms, bridal-style, making the Irishman blush a bit, despite the shocks of pain that raced through his leg as he was lifted. Once everyone was good, Mark led the way back to the abandoned house, setting Jack on the bed once inside.

“Well, first things first, I guess,” the woman shrugged. “I’m Shixona, and this is my demon partner, Obscurum.” She gestured to the slender dragon carrying Night as Shadow followed closely. Obscurum placed the silver dragon on the bed by Jack’s other side, since Mark had occupied the other.

“My name’s Jack,” the omega replied, wincing as he shifted in place.

“On second thought, lemme take care of that leg before we go much further,” Shixona murmured, pulling her bag off her back and digging through it to get some medical supplies out. She carefully rolled up the torn pant leg so she could have easier access to the wounds, and began to gently clean them, apologizing here and there when Jack hissed from the sting of the antiseptic.

When she finished placing bandages on the wounds, Shadow perked when Night began to stir with a whine. The black dragon was quick to press himself against his brother’s side, nuzzling him reassuringly. Jack knew why; Night had a tendency of panicking when he came to after passing out. Being close to someone he cared about helped prevent that.

“You okay there?” Anti asked, brows furrowed. Jack and Night were the only ones he’d shown concern for that the omega knew of, but he had a feeling that list would expand soon enough, what with Mark, Shadow, and Dark around now. And maybe even Shixona and Obscurum.

“Mmm… Yeah, think so…” the silver dragon mumbled when he blinked his eyes open, before groaning. “Fucking iron bands there…”

“I still don’t understand how it seemed to know. There’s no way it could have been a fluke,” Jack frowned, confused.

“Sorry, but mind backtracking? I’d rather not get too lost here,” Shixona inquired, shifting in place until she was sitting cross-legged on the floor. She reached behind her head and adjusted her hair tie that was holding her hair up in a ponytail, even with her hat on.

“Right, that’d be wise,” the Irishman agreed. He explained what happened with him two years ago, how he got Anti as his demon and Night as well, and finished with meeting Mark yesterday when he saved him, Dark and Shadow appearing as well.

“Well damn,” the brunette sighed when he finished. “I didn’t realize they’d already progressed as far as they had when they reached Colorado two months ago.”

“I wonder how much of the world is left for them to destroy?” Mark questioned no one in particular.

“I would imagine not much, at this rate,” Obscurum murmured, the red of her irises and sclera glowing a bit in the dim lighting of the room. Shuffling her wings a bit so they were pressed closer to her back, she lowered her head so her throat was covered, closing her eyes. “There’s not a significant amount remaining for them to destroy.”

“We’ll just have to deal with ‘em as we can,” Jack said softly. “It’s really all we _can_ do right now…”

“What were you guys doing out there earlier when Obscurum and I arrived, by the way?” Shixona asked after a moment.

“Lettin’ those two fight their spat and settle shite,” the omega chuckled, pointing at Anti and Dark by the couch. “We were headin’ back over here to rest before going material huntin’ when that angel attacked.”

“Mm, like a sibling rivalry at its finest~” Obscurum smirked, making Dark glare at her.

“As insufferable and condescending as ever,” he scowled. Surprisingly, Anti didn’t really react for once, and Jack watched him, brows furrowed in concern.

“Why thank you,” the demon dragon cooed, examining her claws on one hand as she leaned back against the wall with her hind legs holding her up. “I learned from the best, after all.” The aura-wielding demon rolled his eyes in response.

“…Hey, mind if we join you guys? I’m thinking more strength in numbers, and besides, from what you’ve told me, fighting’s not going to be very successful for a bit,” the brunette said, gaining Jack’s attention.

“Actually, that’s a good idea,” the green-haired man nodded, before looking to Mark. “What do ya think?”

“And before you answer, don’t worry about any alpha-arguments,” Shixona added with a smile. “I’m a beta.”

“That’s the least of my concerns, since Jack’s a beta, too,” Mark laughed. “But yeah, I’m with Jack.” The words made a strange feeling of warmth curl in the Irishman’s chest, giving him pause.

‘ _What the fuck…?_ ’ he thought, frowning a little bit. He caught Anti glancing at him, but he didn’t react, knowing his demon would speak with him soon enough.

“Nice! Thanks for having us,” the beta grinned, brown eyes sparkling eagerly. “So, you mentioned hunting for materials earlier. What exactly for?”

“Dark’s gonna have a weapon made for me with enough scrap metal,” Mark explained.

“Very cool~” Shixona giggled. “Well, depending on the weapon, I’m more than happy to help train you.”

“Thank you,” the alpha told her kindly. A yawn escaped Jack unbidden, accompanied by a wave of sudden exhaustion, grabbing the larger man’s attention. “Do you want to rest, Jack?”

“Normally I’d say no, since I don’t get this tired so easily, but I think I will this time…” the Irishman conceded, sighing.

“Hey, don’t push yourself, kay?” Shixona urged, even as Mark carefully helped to position Jack into a comfortable sleeping position. She looked back at Anti, adding, “And since you’re basically his doppelgänger demon, you’re probably feeling some of his exhaustion. Might wanna revert.”

An obvious flash of irritation flitted across Anti’s face, one that Jack knew he himself often showed before things went to shit. It was one of those, ‘Well, I was going to do it until you told me to, but now I don’t really want to,’ looks. Regardless, he reverted to Jack’s mind anyway, rolling his eyes as he vanished, the Irishman soon feeling his presence within himself.

“…Perhaps going hunting would be wise now,” Dark suggested quietly.

“What about Jack, though?” Mark frowned, the smell of his worry spiking sharply.

“I can stay with him,” Shixona offered. “Obscurum can go with you for extra security. I’ll be fine!” she exclaimed when Obscurum fixed her with a harsh look.

“…You’re lucky I know you as well as I do, or I would be more hesitant,” she said coolly. Pushing off from the wall, she started to walk outside, still on her hind legs. “I’ll wait outside for the rest of you to accompany me.” With that, she disappeared through the entrance, her black scales shimmering faintly on her lean, slender form.

“Sorry, she’s very firm about my safety, even though she knows I’m a pretty self-reliant person,” the brunette sighed. “Don’t worry too much about us, okay? We’ll be fine.”

“I might as well stay, too,” Night muttered, getting up and going to the couch, where he curled up in a ball on a blanket that was shaped into a nest. “I’m not much use until my energy returns.”

“That’s fair,” Shixona smiled sympathetically.

“How am I supposed to hunt?” Mark questioned, thoroughly confused. “I don’t even have my weapon yet.”

“Easy: let Dark take the reigns for a bit,” the beta shrugged, but then burst out laughing at the alpha’s appalled look. Jack couldn’t help joining in, highly amused. “It’s not horrible, I promise! It might be needed at times, anyway, so it’s best to start getting used to it sooner than later.”

“Anti and I have had to multiple times, if that helps,” the omega assured him. “It’s really not bad. It’s just weirder to not have control of yourself than anythin’.”

“If you say so…” the red-haired man conceded. Dark rolled his eyes and scoffed.

“Get used to it,” he snorted, before reverting. Within seconds of doing so, the aura-wielding demon took over, minute physical changes revealing such: his skin paled to an ashen grey, and he gained a cold demeanor to his expression.

“All good?” Shixona asked.

“…No issues, unless he tries to learn how to regain control at inopportune times,” Dark huffed.

“Let’s just get this done before Obscurum gets impatient and leaves without us,” Shadow piped up, getting to his feet. “I have a feeling she’d do that.”

“Something to that effect,” Dark mumbled, leaving the room with Shadow as Jack watched them leave from where he was lying on his side. Shixona tilted her head slightly, listening to them leave.

“…They’re out of range,” Night said quietly, before igniting the fire pit they had with a flick of his tail, startling the pair. Shixona nodded to him in wordless thanks, and he closed his eyes again. All was quiet for several minutes, only the sounds of their breathing and the fire crackling filling the air.

“…You’re an omega, aren’t you?” Shixona asked suddenly, causing Jack to stiffen in alarm. He stared at her, icy blue eyes wide, panicking and wondering how the fuck she figured it out. “Relax, I won’t tell. It’s not my place,” she soothed, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“…” The green-haired man was silent, still anxious that someone knew that he didn’t tell. Surprisingly, even Anti was quiet.

“You smell vaguely of suppressant injections,” the beta explained. “I remember the scent being freshest within days of my dad using them when I was younger. Not the most obvious thing to smell, but my nose has always been pretty sensitive, even for betas.”

“…Promise you won’t tell anyone?” Jack asked in a whisper.

“Not a soul. Obscurum will know if she doesn’t already, since we’re partners, but otherwise, my lips are sealed,” she promised. “Like I said, it’s not my secret to tell.”

“Only my family knew because I had my first heat at 16… We all agreed to not say anythin’, just tell others I was a beta if asked,” the Irishman mumbled. “I know omegas are treated much better than they were years ago, before I was even born, but I can’t help but have that fear… ‘Specially now, when sex isn’t somethin’ easy for many people ta get… An omega in heat would be perfect for a sex-deprived alpha wantin’ a good fuck.”

“Ironically enough, I will say many of the angel hunters aren’t alphas,” Shixona remarked. “A good amount of us are betas, the rest being alphas and omegas. But I can assure you that from those I _have_ met, they’re not interested in sexual escapades right now. They’re all just trying to stay alive.”

“Still would rather not risk it…” Jack sighed, lowering his gaze to the bed.

“Do you like him?”

“Huh?”

“Mark. Do you like him?”

“He’s a nice guy, from what I know so far. We just met last night when I saved him from angel. Anythin’ further I dunno,” the green-haired man replied. “Why?”

“Just seems to me like you might be feeling more than just friendship for him. Granted, without quite realizing what the feeling is, but hey,” the brunette answered.

“What?!” Jack yelped, a crimson blush flooding his cheeks.

“Mark certainly appears to, based on what I’ve seen so far,” Shixona continued, smiling fondly as she tipped her head back to look at the ceiling. “Reminds me of my parents when I was a teenager. My father, an alpha, was always _super_ protective of my dad, his omega. If anyone ever gave my dad shit, even if it was just bad customer service or someone being rude in a store, my father defended him, no matter what. Father also worried so much about Dad, and Dad often teased him by saying he was a mother hen.”

She laughed lightly at the memory, but continued on. “From what I’ve seen since we met, he’s already clingy with you, and worried about you more than two people who just met would be. I’ll be honest, it’s rather cute~”

“……” The omega bit his lip, already freaking out. He looked to Anti within him, trying to get his feelings on this, but the demon shook his head a bit, holding a finger up as if to say ‘wait’.

“I’m sorry, I’m just a really perceptive person, and I have a bad habit of speaking up on stuff I notice,” the beta apologized when he kept quiet. “I’ll try not to do it unless I’m really worried, but please feel free to talk to me if you need to, okay?” Jack nodded a little, and she started to stand. “I’ll let you rest, Jack. Try to sleep, and I’ll make sure the others keep it down when they return.” With that said, she left to the entrance, staying just out of sight.

‘ _How the fuck?! I’ve never met anyone so perceptive!!_’ Jack exclaimed to Anti as he closed his eyes. The demon was perturbed by what had just transpired, clearly, but it didn’t seem to be just from the conversation.

‘ ** _I know what you mean. She explained how she figured shit out so easily, but fuckin’ dammit…_** ’ Anti groaned. ‘ ** _To be honest, I think I’M respondin’ to what yer startin’ ta feel, but in my case, it’s fer Dark…_** ’

‘ _Wha…?_ ’

‘ ** _I kinda remember The Demon Lord explainin’ it once, WAY back,_** ’ Anti started to explain. ‘ ** _She said some of the more powerful demons have a more human appearance because there either is, was, or will be a human that resembles them, and the human fuels that demon’s strength without consequence. But it also means we’re more in sync with each other, in emotions and shite. That’s why I was more tired earlier before I reverted in here._** ’

‘ _Fuckin’ dammit…_ ’ the Irishman whined. ‘ _The fuck do we do, then?_ ’

‘ ** _Dunno… We’ll just have ta see how things go…_** ’ the glitch demon sighed. ‘ ** _Fer now, focus on sleepin’, that way I can help yer leg heal faster._** ’

‘ _Kay… Thank you, Anti…_ ’ Jack murmured, shifting a little in place before settling down further. It didn’t take long for sleep to come over him, going into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to TRY to post Chapter 3 on Halloween, but if I can't, I'm sorry! Between work and whatnot, it'll be a BIT tricky, but I'll try!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!  
> I made good on my promise after all! Hope you guys enjoy~!!

When Jack woke up, it was to the mouthwatering aroma of cooking meat and soft voices talking. Anti’s presence seemed to buzz to life within him, literally, as he tended to upon waking in general. After a small pause, the demon spoke up.

‘ ** _Seems your leg’s all good to go,_** ’ he said.

‘ _Took stock, huh?_ ’ the Irishman chuckled.

‘ ** _Since you don’t always do so yourself…_** ’ came the cheeky reply. Jack rolled his eyes at him with a small smile in his mind, before opening his eyes. Sitting up with a small grunt, he stretched, gaining the others’ attention.

“Hey Jack!” Mark grinned at him in greeting. “How’s your leg?”

“Back to normal,” Anti answered as he appeared, drawing a startled yelp from the alpha. The glitch demon cackled at the reaction, bicolor eyes sparkling with mischief, moving over to sit down next to Dark by the fire. Jack couldn’t help but chuckle, too, before he took notice of a large sword propped against the wall by the omega’s crossbow and holsters.

“Dark made yer weapon already?” he blinked, surprised.

“Yeah! Shadow actually tracked down enough scrap metal while we were out,” Mark nodded excitedly. Shadow puffed up his chest proudly at that, but yipped when Night flicked him in the back of the head with his tail, smirking. “A bit bigger than I’d expected, but I’m not complaining.”

“That’s what he said,” Shixona snickered. “Sorry, couldn’t resist!” she laughed at the men’s blushes as they gawked at her. “I’m more used to ‘he’ since my parents were guys.”

“Makes sense, but geez…” Mark mumbled into his cup, taking a drink of water. Jack swallowed the sudden lump in his throat, before realizing the sword looked pretty familiar.

“Wait… It looks like the Buster Sword from Final Fantasy VII!!” he exclaimed.

“It does, but that means it’ll do more damage,” the brunette pointed out.

“And it’s light enough for me that I can swing it easily,” the red-haired man added, but then he paused. “You play video games?” His tone was excited, making Jack laugh.

“Yeah, I did before…ya know,” he shrugged. “I loved it, too. Mainly PC games, but I still played some console games, too.”

“Same here!” Mark grinned. “I had a blast playing with my brother Tom when we were younger, and Mom would have to yell at us to get to bed or we’d ruin our sleep.” His expression saddened at the mention of his family.

“I’m sorry, Mark…” the smaller man murmured, Shixona giving the alpha a sympathetic look. An idea came to him, though, and he moved over to sit by him. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he turned it on and pulled up his photo gallery.

“How the fuck does your phone still work?” Shixona questioned, confused. Obscurum chuckled softly at her shock.

“Anti keeps it charged, and the angels haven’t done shit with cell phones towers,” Jack answered simply. Looking at Mark again, he said, “Mark, can I show you somethin’?”

“What is it?” the larger man asked.

“Pictures of my family,” the green-haired man told him, pulling up the album and showing him the pictures. “Whenever I get sad rememberin’ ‘em, I look at my pictures of ‘em and remind myself I’m doin’ this for ‘em.”

“…” Mark looked at the pictures as Jack swiped through them slowly, a tiny smile curving his lips as he saw each picture.

“I think it’d be good for you to do the same,” the Irishman suggested, smiling up at him. “Anti can keep your phone charged, too.”

“…I’d like that,” the alpha nodded. “Thank you, Jack.”

“Of course,” Jack smiled.

“Did you really have four siblings, though?” Mark asked.

“Yeah, and I was the youngest,” the omega chuckled. “Even though I was the baby, my brothers and sisters didn’t coddle me. Neither did my parents. They supported and protected me as I needed it.”

“You’re both lucky you had siblings,” Shixona piped up. “I was an only child. Dad used suppressants after having me, or if Father asked him to have his heat, they’d use alpha condoms.”

“How…?” the red-haired man trailed off.

“I’m not stupid,” the beta laughed lightly. “They’d send me to a friend’s house for a few days in my teens when Dad would have a heat with Father. I’d sometimes see the condom wrappers in the trash or still catch the residual heat scent when I got home. Kinda hard not to put two-and-two together.”

“You can smell heat scents?” Mark frowned. “Even as a beta?”

“Yep. Doesn’t affect me, obviously, but I’ve got a more sensitive nose than some alphas,” she shrugged. “Helps that my parents were more open with the sex talk sometimes. Not in a cringe-worthy or awkward way, but they answered questions I had sometimes as best as they could. Sometimes resulted in one of them blushing like crazy, though.”

“I can imagine,” Jack laughed. Of course, his stomach growled audibly, making him wince at the hunger cramps.

“Here, Obscurum caught an elk earlier,” Mark told him, handing him a bowl with a good amount of elk meat in it. The smaller man thanked him before starting to eat.

“It will keep us fed for a few days at least,” the demon dragon chimed in, her eyes closed.

“We will have to move on at some point,” Dark added.

“Definitely. We need to start looking for some way to stop this,” Night agreed, as Shadow nodded.

“The main source of this ordeal will be in heaven. We will have to kill The Holy One,” Obscurum murmured, opening her eyes.

“But there’s no way for us to reach heaven,” Anti grumbled. “At least, that we know of…”

“If there were, we would have ended this long ago and prevented any further destruction,” Dark muttered.

“Do you know of any angels that are actually able to talk that might be able to give us an answer?” Jack asked the three demons.

“It’d have ta be a high-rankin’ one, but unless we give ‘em more trouble to be considered a real threat, it’ll be a bit,” Anti replied.

“Which means killing a LOT of angels,” Shadow realized.

“Fine by me,” Mark muttered darkly.

“I’ll second that,” the Irishman added.

“Same,” Shixona growled.

The group fell silent after that, all just gazing into the crackling fire with thoughts of ending this destruction from the angels on their minds.

X*X*X*X*X*X*X

The next morning arrived with the sound of rain pattering on the roof, and it made Jack grumble in annoyance at the noise.

“Not a fan of the rain, huh?” Shixona’s voice asked sympathetically from the couch. She was already sitting up, keeping her voice down since Mark was still sleeping.

“Considerin’ it always rained in Ireland, yeah, kinda sick of it,” the omega complained after a yawn, his voice low, too.

“I hated it when I used to wear glasses, since it and snow would get my lenses all spotted, but now it’s not a problem,” she shrugged. “I got Lasik eye surgery as soon as I was able to, when I was 18. No more glasses after that~”

“Nice,” Jack chuckled softly. “Hardly snowed in Ireland, but I was happy when it did.”

“You’d like it in Colorado, then,” Shixona smiled. “Even at this time of year, it snows sometimes.”

“But it’s only October?”

“We’ve had snow in May before, dude. My parents used to say Mother Nature is bipolar with Colorado,” the beta laughed lightly, before perking when Mark groaned tiredly next to him on the bed. “Morning, sleepyhead~”

“Ugh, morning…” the alpha mumbled, yawning loudly.

“Mornin’, Mark,” the Irishman greeted.

“G’morning…”

“Shadow and I will go take care of breakfast,” Night piped up from by the fire pit. He nudged his brother with his tail before standing to leave. Shadow was quick to follow, waving to the group with his tail as he left.

“…Aw, shit, they didn’t light the fire pit!” Jack whined when the cold hit him, making him shiver.

“And the rainstorms here in Cincinnati don’t go too quick, either…” Mark sighed, sitting up.

“A simple fix,” Obscurum quipped when she appeared from Shixona, before black flames flared from the fire pit, then settled into a regular, orange blaze. At the men’s confused looks, she added, “My flames are characteristically black unless I let them merely burn without my control.”

“It’s her signature,” Anti chimed in when he and Dark appeared, the former yawning as the demons all settled by the fire.

Once all three humans had managed to huddle around the warmth of the fire, Shixona spoke first.

“Think you’ll be able to handle training with me using your new sword, Markimoo?” she asked with a teasing look. The nickname made Jack burst into giggles.

“‘Markimoo’?” the red-haired man repeated, laughing.

“I like it! It suits ya!” the green-haired man snickered.

“And you’ll be Jackaboy,” the brunette added, looking at Jack.

“That works!”

“Anyhoo, what say you about training?” Shixona inquired, looking to Mark again with an amused smile. “Won’t be too bad. If you’ve played VR that involved _some_ sort of sword fighting, that should help.”

“I think I can manage. But what about the mud?”

“It’ll be good for you to adapt to less-than-ideal terrain,” the beta explained. “And if you’re worried about getting covered in mud, I’m sure you can wash off somewhere.”

“She’s got a point,” the omega nodded when Mark looked at him in silent question. “A lot of the fights I’ve had to deal with have been in shitty places.”

“Guess we’re training today, then,” the alpha shrugged.

“Sounds like a plan~” Shixona giggled. After a few minutes, she asked, “So, Jack, what was it like in Ireland? I’ve never been in Europe, let alone Ireland, but I’ve heard it’s full of beautiful countryside and such.”

“It is,” Jack confirmed, a fond smile curving his lips. “I lived in Athlone for a little bit after movin’ out of my family’s cabin in the woods in Ballycumber. We lived in that cabin durin’ my teens ‘til I moved out.”

“That’s cool! Reminds me a bit of how my parents and I lived,” the brunette grinned. “We lived in a pretty isolated part of Colorado, around Woodland Park on the way out to Divide, and it was gorgeous. A bit scary to drive in during snowy periods, but even the snow was beautiful.”

“Cincinnati is amazing during autumn here,” Mark added. “That’s why I was here visiting. I wanted to see the leaves changing colors before winter fully hit, and see my mom and brother.” His expression saddened as he added quietly, “Never expected this, though…”

“None of us did,” the Irishman murmured, wrapping a comforting arm around the larger man’s shoulders. “For me, I was visitin’ my family in Cloghan. I was born there, and my parents moved back there after I moved out. We were havin’ a little family reunion… My oldest brother, Malcolm, had just proposed to his girlfriend earlier in the evenin’, and we’d all gone to bed when two angels crashed through…” Tears formed in the corners of his eyes as he remembered the horror.

“…My parents and I had just returned home from us all celebrating them renewing their vows in Japan,” Shixona whispered, her gaze fixed on the dancing flames. “Dad was Japanese, and Father had met him while Dad was visiting America for the first time. Father had always been taught to respect omegas, and so had every alpha in his family, even before omegas were as treasured as they are now. When they met, it was an instant attraction.” She paused to quirk her lips in a faint smile. “Dad insisted on Father meeting his family before they became too serious, as it was tradition for them, and Father was quickly adored by his soon-to-be in-laws. They came back to America and got married in Colorado, and a week later, Dad went into heat, then had me six months later. They had been married and mated for 25 years before the angels struck…”

The demons were silent throughout their human partners’ words, respecting the sorrow they felt. Jack was grateful for that, he truly was. A flash of lightning outside made Anti’s pixels pull rapidly at his frame for a few seconds, a small sound of static buzzing from him, and he groaned.

“Fuckin’ dammit… Better ground myself, or the fuckin’ lightnin’ is gonna make me burst into pixels for a bit ‘til I can build myself back together again,” he griped as he moved to stand on a stone part of the floor.

“Huh?” Mark frowned, confused.

“Just ‘cuz I can use lightnin’ and control electricity, doesn’t mean it won’t do fucked up shite to me if I’m not careful,” the viral demon grumbled.

“So, what you control can harm you as well, hm?” Dark teased.

“No, ya dumbass motherfucker, that’s not what I meant and you know it!” Anti snapped, glaring.

“I’ve weakened you down into separating into your auras before, Dark, so I would mind my tongue if I were you,” Obscurum warned coolly before Dark could retort. When he growled at her, she added, “I won’t hesitate to do so again, if necessary.”

Tense silence settled over them, Jack glancing between his new companions a bit nervously. It seemed that demons could be amicable at best, never quite friendly, but often at each other’s throats. With each other, at least. None of the demons in the partnerships Jack had met while hunting angels were itching for a fight with humans. Not even a verbal one.

A sudden, sharp trill reached all of them from outside, everyone but Jack and Anti looking up in confusion. The two snapped their gazes to the entrance, tensing up.

“What was that?” Mark frowned.

“Night,” the omega answered. “That was his warnin’ call when he’s not close enough to speak without bein’ detected. We need ta get ready ta move.” He was already getting to his feet, hurrying over to grab his crossbow, holster, and bag. As Shixona and Mark were grabbing their own belongings, the brothers ran in.

“How far are they?” Anti demanded as Jack fixed his crossbow on his back over his black leather jacket, adjusting a grey cap on his head to better cover himself in the rain.

“Three of them, less than half a mile out,” Night answered, before frowning slightly in confusion. “What was strange was they seemed to be actively avoiding the wildlife.”

“Weird…” Shixona mumbled. “I never noticed that before.”

“Thinkin’ back, yeah, they have, but I never thought anythin’ of it,” the green-haired man said, checking to see how many bullets he had in his HK45’s before holstering them. He had plenty, thankfully.

“Worry about it later. Danger is imminent, and we must deal with it before pondering any further information,” Obscurum growled, bristling. While Shixona grabbed her katana in its sheath to place in her belt, Jack noticed Mark struggling a bit to put his sword on the holder that he’d had strapped on his back.

“Here, lemme help,” the smaller man offered, moving over to him. Once he had it in place, Mark relaxed.

“Thanks for that, Jack,” the alpha smiled gratefully at him.

“Of course,” Jack replied, smiling helplessly despite the strange curl of warmth in his chest at that smile. Branches breaking from outside made them all snap their gazes in that direction in alarm.

“…Is there anywhere we can go nearby after they’re dead?” Shixona whispered.

“Much as I hate to suggest it… We could try my mom’s house…if it’s still in reasonable shape,” Mark muttered.

“It is…but are you sure, Mark?” the Irishman questioned worriedly.

“It’s the only place I know of that would work,” the red-haired man sighed. “Though, based on where we are now, I don’t know how to get there…”

“I can lead the way,” Night assured them. “It’s not too far, maybe a few miles.”

“That’s the plan, then,” Shixona nodded. Before anyone could say more, the wall burst in on them, three angels similar to the one from before crashing through the rubble.

In unison, Night and Shadow kicked off the ground, firing frosty, pale blue-colored beams from their jaws at the front two. The two angels were quickly frozen in place, but Jack knew it wouldn’t hold them for long. The third angel shot past the frozen ones, moving much faster than the one from yesterday had.

The angel raced towards Mark, who pulled his sword from its holder as fast as he could, but not fast enough. Shadowy tendrils shot up from dark pools on the ground before it could hit him, ensnaring the angel by the bottom of its ring and flinging it back, slamming into the other two and shattering the ice encasing them in the process.

Dark snorted derisively, a cold sneer on his face as he watched the angels re-orient themselves.

“Nice to see you haven’t lost your edge, even after all this time~” Obscurum smirked at him. The aura-wielding demon merely snorted, before jolting back in slight alarm as Anti shot past him, knives in hand, primed to strike. The viral demon slid the blades together a few times, resulting a sort of clanging screech, drawing the angels’ attention immediately.

“Careful, Anti…” Jack cautioned in a low voice, knowing what he was trying to do. His demon merely smirked wickedly, twirling his knives in his grip once. Without warning, he stabbed the blades into the rain-soaked soil…shortly followed by a column of electricity bursting up from beneath the three. Pained shrieks were quickly drowned out by the electricity rumbling and crackling over them.

“That works!” Mark laughed, seeing the angels literally burned and smoke emanating from them as sparks danced over their wings. Even as they all struggled, the fastest one seemed to recover quicker, and raced towards Anti to strike.

Two gunshots rang out, knocking it back and stunning it. Jack holstered his guns and rushed over to Anti as he struggled to straighten up, supporting him.

“Fuckin’ hell, yer crazy, ya know that?” the Irishman chided.

“That’s my name, don’t wear it out, yeh?” the demon snickered breathlessly.

“Take it easy, ya doof,” Jack sighed, waiting for Anti to revert so he could rest. Once he had, the green-haired man refocused on the fight.

“…I guess I get my moment now, hm?” the demon dragon hummed, before snapping out the end of her tail sharply…revealing a set of wicked-looking blades that had been concealed by her scales. They were thin, but appeared to be capable of delivering a nasty slice with the greatest of ease. She held out a clawed hand to one side, a seemingly-flat black disc appearing a few inches from it. Without hesitation, she went into it, disappearing from sight.

Suddenly, she reappeared from another black disc, this time above the angels, and shot out of it swiftly, spinning at the last split second and smashing into them with her bladed tail. Black flames erupted from the ground upon impact, swiftly eating along the feathered wings and drawing more screeches from them. Jumping back, she nodded sharply to Shixona.

“Mark! Get ready to slice!” the beta called to the alpha, and although surprised, he nodded, gripping the handle of his sword tighter. Dark’s tendrils snared them all this time, followed by a shot of blade-shaped red light at each one, stunning them into immobility.

“ **NOW!!** ”

Shixona and Mark lunged forward together, slashing through the angels together. The two had to swing together for the third one, making a pair of clean cuts through it. White blood flowed from their bodies, washing away in the rain. The beta stepped back, wiping her katana off with the cloth on her belt before sheathing it.

“That was _much_ easier with eight of us working together!” she grinned.

“Don’t you go fuckin’ temptin’ fate, dammit,” Jack groaned.

“Right, sorry!” Shixona apologized sheepishly.

“Nothing like getting your first training session against a real threat,” Mark commented as the smaller man walked over to them.

“Sometimes the pressure makes ya perform better,” Jack shrugged. Once the alpha had placed his sword back in its holder, Night hopped up onto his partner’s shoulder guard. Shadow glided over from the branch he’d been on, perching on the handle of Mark’s sword.

“Ready to head out?” the silver dragon asked simply. The humans exchanged brief looks, before nodding to him. Satisfied, Night jumped back down, beginning to lead the way to Mark’s mom’s house.

Even though Mark had said he would be okay with going back there, Jack was still worried about him. The Irishman hadn’t even gone back to his parent’s house after his family was killed, just too terrified at the prospect of seeing his loved ones dead. Looking back at the red-haired man, whose gaze was focused on the ground as he walked, Jack slowed enough to fall into step beside him. Without a word, he took Mark’s hand in his own, squeezing gently to reassure him. It seemed to surprise the alpha, but he squeezed back.

“…Thank you…” he whispered, smiling gratefully.

“Anytime,” Jack murmured back, smiling slightly as well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, some of you lovely readers may have noticed I changed the gender for The Demon Lord to female. If not, no biggie. I just felt it would be better, personally. I went back and edited chapter 2 to match that. Also, with Shixona using the “that’s what he said” quip, like she said, I couldn’t resist. Why not? XD


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I apologize if it seems like I’m making Mark and Jack OOC. I have a bad tendency to alter characters to my liking, differing from their usual personas. Especially with the bottom. I’ve noticed with all of my fics that I love making the bottom in the pairing sometimes meek, sometimes fiery at times, quick to anger with some things, protective/possessive, and most often, emotional and/or not very confident. I’m going to TRY to keep Jack more in-character to his actual self in this than that trend, but I can’t promise/guarantee anything.
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story, Shadow, Night, Shixona, and Obscurum.

Dusk had rolled in by the time they reached Mark’s mom’s house. The demons had all reverted within their partners to rest, leaving Night and Shadow to trot along and keep their senses perked for any danger. Shadow ended up clinging to Mark’s sword handle again, while Night was perched on Jack’s shoulder guard when they got close enough for Mark to lead.

Jack let Mark lead them all to the door, since the house had been left reasonably intact (surprisingly, all things considered). They all quietly watched the alpha as he took a deep breath to calm himself before opening the door, and on pure instinct, the omega grasped Mark’s free hand, squeezing it once firmly to show his support. He got a small squeeze back in return, and then they followed the red-haired man in.

Once they had set their weapons in the closet by the front door, Jack watched his new friend worriedly as he gazed around his mom’s house, keeping a close eye on any changes in his demeanor. As Mark moved around, seeming to examine some of the belongings, Anti piped up within Jack.

‘ ** _I get the feelin’ we should lie low for a bit,_** ’ he suggested, surprising the Irishman.

‘ _You think so?_ ’ Jack asked.

‘ ** _Yeh. I just can tell by lookin’ at ‘im that he’s not in much of a condition to train properly, let alone fight,_** ’ Anti pointed out.

The green-haired man nodded minutely, knowing his demon was right. It would be fucked up and wrong of them to try and push Mark into training while here. At least until he’s ready, anyway. Shixona caught the motion, and she seemed to realize what he was thinking without him saying a word, nodding slightly in agreement.

“Let’s rest up,” the beta murmured, finally breaking the silence. Mark glanced over at her, taking a moment to register what she’d said, before mumbling an agreement.

Biting his lip a little out of pure nerves, as he didn’t want to upset him, Jack went to the alpha and asked softly, “Would you like to show me some stuff here?” Internally, he winced at how stupid that sounded. However, Mark chuckled quietly.

“Sure. I’ll show you guys the bedrooms, at least,” he smiled, but the expression didn’t quite reach his eyes. The two dragons went back outside at that, Shadow mentioning hunting, but it was clear they were giving some privacy to their humans.

He led them to the guest room first, which Shixona claimed with a teasing gleam in her eyes at Jack. Next was Mark’s mom’s room, but he couldn’t bring himself to open the door. His friends assured him it was fine, though.

They stopped briefly to look at his brother, Tom’s, room, and then finally Mark’s old room. Shixona murmured something about getting some food going since they needed to replenish their strength, and left the two men alone.

Mark opened his old bedroom door, swinging it open completely, and gesturing for Jack to go in first. The smaller man did so, sitting on the bed and quietly waiting for the alpha to join him. Once seated together, the red-haired man took in a shuddering breath, exhaling it just as shakily. Jack leaned against his shoulder, wrapping his arm around him comfortingly, and that did it.

Mark leaned forward, his shoulders hunching as he began to cry. Heart-wrenching sobs tore from his chest and made him shake from the force of them, as tears dripped onto his jeans. His fists were clenched tight against his knees, and he was slightly rocking back and forth as he cried.

The whole thing made Jack’s heart clench painfully, knowing the pain, but only to an extent. After all, he’d never gone back to his family’s home after they were gone. He took his dad’s handguns and ammo for them, went to the cabin to take the crossbow, and then went to his apartment from there. For Mark to choose to come back here, especially so soon after losing his family…he was a better person than Jack was for it.

Without a word, the Irishman smoothed his hand up and down Mark’s back, leaning into his side to provide comfort and support. At one point, he even smoothed out one of the alpha’s clenched fists and held his hand, gripping it firmly.

It felt like hours before the larger man began to settle down, his shaking lessening to nothing, his sobs and cries quieting down to sniffles, and finally relaxing his posture enough to lean against Jack. The green-haired man supported his weight without complaint, slowing his back rubbing enough to wrap his arm around Mark’s waist.

“……Thank you, Jack,” the red-haired man rasped after a few more minutes.

“You’re welcome, Mark,” Jack murmured kindly. “…You’re a better person than me, I can say that much.”

“…?”

“After my family was killed, I…I never went back,” the omega explained quietly, biting his lip guiltily. “I was too scared to. I didn’t wanna remember my family like that… I just took my dad’s handguns and ammo, went back to the cabin and took the crossbow, and that was it. I just went back to my apartment to figure shite out and went from there…”

A startled yelp escaped Jack as he was suddenly wrapped up in a firm hug, being held close by Mark. Tears leaked from his eyes unbidden, and he hugged the alpha back, grateful for his presence and comfort. Shixona’s words about Mark seeming to feel more than just friendship for Jack rang through his mind, unprompted by Anti, surprisingly.

“…You’re a lot fucking stronger than you give yourself credit for,” Mark mumbled into his dyed hair suddenly. The Irishman had a split-second of panic run through him when he thought the larger man might smell past his suppressant, but it went away as quick as it had come.

“What…?” he asked, swallowing thickly.

“To have been hunting and killing angels for two years the way you have been, going through what you did… I don’t know how you did it, but I’m glad you did, because you saved me, and now I’m getting to know you,” Mark replied. After a moment, he pulled away just enough to look Jack in the eye.

“When this is over, we’re going to Ireland. You _need_ that closure,” the alpha said seriously. “Trust me, you’ll feel better.”

Although hesitant about the idea, Jack nodded, biting his lip again. He didn’t want to break down, even though he knew Mark was right in saying that the closure would be good for him. Then it registered what Mark had said after Jack needing closure.

“Have…have you lost someone like that before this, Mark?” the smaller man questioned hesitantly.

“…My dad,” he replied quietly. “He passed away from cancer when I was younger, but when I found out, I was away with friends. I didn’t want to see him at the funeral because I didn’t want to remember him like that, but it helped when I saw him. I got a chance to say goodbye…”

“……You’re right,” Jack realized, thinking about it. Being able to speak to them and say goodbye, even though it’s been two years, would help him. “Thank you, Mark.”

“Anytime, buddy,” Mark smiled, and this time, it looked genuine. They stayed like that for a while, just providing each other some comfort, until Jack realized it had been a bit, and he hadn’t heard anything from Night.

‘ ** _He might just be trying to give you guys space still,_** ’ Anti reasoned.

‘ _No, this doesn’t feel right,_ ’ Jack frowned, getting to his feet. “I’m gonna go find Night and Shadow. They’ve been out for a while…”

“Should I come with?” Mark asked, furrowing his brow in concern.

“I should be fine. I have Anti in case anythin’ happens, and I dun want you to get hurt if somethin’ does happen,” the green-haired man replied, already heading back out to the living room. As he slung his crossbow into its holder, he called out to Shixona, letting her know what he was doing.

“Just be careful out there, yeah?” she called back. “Obscurum hasn’t detected anything out of the ordinary, but that doesn’t always mean there’s nothing dangerous out there.”

“I gotcha,” Jack nodded, heading outside once he’d put his gun holster around his waist. “I’ll be back.”

Once he closed the door behind himself, he looked around, trying to figure out where to start.

‘ _Any idea which way?_ ’ he asked his demon.

‘ ** _Based on the faint trail through the bond, that way,_** ’ Anti answered, using a mental nudge to point the omega in the right direction. Nodding minutely, Jack headed off, following the trail Anti had, since he had no other way to track the brothers.

The trail seemed to go on for a while, but then it suddenly vanished at one point, confusing both the human and demon.

‘ ** _The fuck…?_** ’ the glitch demon frowned heavily, confused. ‘ ** _It can’t have fuckin’ vanished. The trail’s more recent this way, so how did it disappear?_** ’

‘ _I don’t know, but I have a bad feelin’ about it,_ ’ Jack murmured, trying to listen for some sort of sign of his dragon.

‘ ** _Jack!! We got company!!_** ’ Anti growled in warning before appearing. He had his knives gripped tight in his hands, glaring at a certain spot off to the side. Jack whipped his handguns out, narrowing his eyes dangerously.

“Show yourself!” he yelled. There was no immediate response…until a snarl sounded preceding a dark blur launching itself from the bushes, attacking Anti. With his demon fully occupied with a beastly demon, Jack had to focus on the man now _literally_ prowling towards him.

“Well, an omega on his own? A nice treat for me,” the man grinned wickedly, making Jack falter slightly. How the actual fuck could this guy tell? The suppressant injections are supposed to hide his omega scent, so how…?

“Back off,” Jack warned, aiming properly at the alpha. There was no way he was anything else.

“Nah, I don’t think so. You’re too delicate-looking to be anything other than an omega, so I highly doubt you have much fight in you,” the man smirked.

“Jack, you gotta run!” Anti yelled to him desperately as he continued to fend off the demon beast. The Irishman was frozen, though, too scared now to move. The shock of being addressed by his true second gender as well as the unexpectedness of the attack had shaken him badly.

“Nowhere to run, pretty one~” the alpha taunted, reaching out to touch Jack’s cheek. Right before he made contact, though…

A purely animalistic, enraged roar tore through the air as a silver blur launched itself down at an angle from the tree branches, smashing into the alpha and crashing into a tree. It was Night, and he was _PISSED_. He snarled in the human’s face, his iris and sclera a deep, blood-red color, and his pupils were completely visible now, rather than the partial they normally were.

His fangs looked like they were dripping with black liquid, some of the drops landing on the alpha’s chest and making him cry out in pain as it hissed against his skin. The liquid was some sort of acid, it seemed.

Jack stumbled back into some of the underbrush, fear and panic making him unable to react properly. He faintly registered Dark’s presence as he joined Anti in fighting off the demon beast, and realized Mark was right beside him, trying to guide him away from the danger.

“But…” he trailed off, watching Night as he tore at the alpha’s arm with his claws, ripping through the skin, flesh, and bone with ease as he ripped the limb off, drawing an agonized scream from him. He wasn’t worried for Night’s safety, no. He knew the dragon was more than capable of finishing the man off. No, he was worried that Night was losing control of himself.

“ **No one touches him!!** ” the silver dragon snarled out, ducking his head down and ripping out the human’s throat. He soon dropped the chunk of bloody flesh from his mouth, glaring coldly at the body before hunching his shoulders in anger. His back was to everyone else, and he was shaking slightly.

“Night!” Shadow’s voice shouted, dashing to his twin. He placed a hand on Night’s back, in the space between his wings. “You have to calm down, okay? We’re all safe, I promise.”

“…” Night was quiet except for his shaky breaths and soft growls. The growls were deep, rumbling from his chest, but they slowly ceased. As he seemed to register what had happened, though, he tensed sharply, glancing back in sheer horror…before seemingly disappearing.

“Dammit!” Shadow cursed. “I’ll bring him back to the house, but you guys gotta get back there, now!” He then took off running, following his brother’s trail.

“…We need to go,” Dark said calmly from Jack’s other side, even as Mark helped him up. They carefully made their way back, Anti’s worried gaze on his human the entire time. Dark’s guard was up, and he occasionally let out a pulse of dark energy to deter any potential foes.

When they got back, Shixona rushed over, clearly frazzled.

“What happened?” she demanded.

“We encountered an alpha while lookin’ for Night and Shadow…and he and his demon attacked us,” Anti explained quietly.

“He knew, Shixona…” Jack breathed, still shell-shocked by what had happened. “He knew…”

“What?!” the brunette gasped. “Fucking dammit…”

Mark led them over to the couch, the two demons reverting to their humans to rest.

“And Night…he attacked the alpha right before he could touch me…and slaughtered him…” the omega whispered. “He had acid for saliva, ‘cause it burned the alpha on contact, and tore his arm off before rippin’ his throat out…”

“I won’t argue that method since he deserved it, but where are Night and Shadow now?” the beta frowned.

“Night seemed to be fighting with himself after killing the guy, and when Shadow started to get him calmed down, Night seemed to realize what had happen, and he took off. Shadow went after him to bring him back,” Mark answered, holding Jack close to comfort him.

“Shit…” Shixona hissed, before Obscurum appeared at her side. “Do you mind helping?”

“I’ll see what I can do,” the demon dragon nodded, before stepping into one of her shadow portals.

“I’ll be right back, just going to make some tea,” the brunette murmured, getting up and going to the kitchen. On instinct, Jack curled more into Mark’s hold, shivering at the thought of the close call he’d had.

“…Hey, Jack?” the red-haired man said softly. The green-haired man hummed in acknowledgement. “What did you mean earlier when you said, ‘he knew’?”

“…!” Jack flinched involuntarily at the question, but knew he needed to be honest. It was the right thing to do, even if he wasn’t even ready to tell him. “…I…I-I’m…an omega…”

“…?” The alpha’s confusion was apparent, so the Irishman sighed, moving to look at him properly.

“I’ve kept my second gender a secret since my first heat at 16… Only my family knew, until two years ago, and then Anti and Night knew when they became my partners…” the Irishman explained. “I’ve been usin’ suppressant injections every two weeks to make it easier than a daily pill, but I’ve hidden my omega status because I don’t want anythin’ to happen… I know things are different now, but I can’t help the fear…” Jack swallowed thickly before continuing.

“I’m sorry I lied when I told you I was a beta,” he apologized, lowering his gaze to the floor out of shame. “I was just scared, but it was wrong of me. Shixona figured it out and told me while you were all out huntin’ after we met her, since she could smell the residual scent from my injection I’d used a few days before I saved you. Again, I’m sorry I kept this from you…”

Mark seemed to be considering his words before he replied, taking in what Jack had told him. After a minute, he spoke.

“I don’t blame you for not saying anything, Jack, especially after what happened earlier. You have to be careful as an omega, even now, and I feel awful for it,” the red-haired man sighed. “You were trying to protect yourself, and you didn’t know me well enough at first to tell me. I’m not mad at all, I promise.”

The omega looked up at him with wide blue eyes, before hugging Mark tightly.

“I’m such a fuckin’ dumbass…” he mumbled into Mark’s chest. “You’re not like the alphas I’ve heard the horror stories about, you’re so much better…”

“Glad to know I’ve made a good impression,” the alpha chuckled softly, hugging him back. “…How did that alpha earlier know, though…?”

“He said I looked too ‘delicate’ to be anythin’ other than an omega…” Jack muttered bitterly, looking away again.

“Then he was a fucking dumbass, because you’re tougher than others,” Mark snorted. “You may _look_ delicate, but that’s deceiving. Besides, that look adds to how cute you are.”

Jack stilled in adjusting himself in Mark’s hold, before looking up at the larger man with a blush.

“You think I’m cute?” he blurted out. Mark rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, realizing what he’d said.

“Well, yeah. You’re more than cute, you’re incredibly attractive, and you’re an awesome person, too,” he murmured, glancing away shyly. Jack smiled up at him, before taking the hand on his side and holding it firmly.

“Then I guess it’s lucky I feel the same about you,” he told him kindly. Those chocolate eyes looked at him in shock, making the Irishman snicker before leaning up to kiss him. Mark responded immediately, kissing back lovingly, tenderly. They didn’t deepen the kiss, nothing further, just held each other and familiarized themselves with kissing the other.

When they finally broke apart to breathe, Jack paused as he either realized something or Anti spoke up within him, and he groaned quietly before yelling, “Shixona, you were fuckin’ right!!” and buried his face in Mark’s chest, his cheeks burning with an embarrassed flush.

“Fuck yes!” the beta cackled from the kitchen. “I told you he had a thing for you!”

Mark rolled his eyes, but held Jack to him anyway, rumbling to soothe him.

A thud accompanied with loud rustling of the brush outside swiftly drew their attention, and they looked in the sound’s direction in alarm. Then Night burst in through the door, appearing panicked, but he relaxed immensely when he saw Jack. Shadow and Obscurum trailed in after him, calmer than the silver dragon.

“I’m so sorry, Jack…!” Night whimpered, diving into his lap. “I…I felt your disgust and fear, and I lost control from my anger… I was only focused on getting rid of the source, which meant killing him… When I realized what had happened, I panicked and ran… I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay, Night…” Jack shushed, petting him along his back, scratching between his wings. “I’m glad you stopped him. He figured out I’m an omega, and was…y’know…”

Night growled lowly, clenching his jaw. “Now I’m _very_ glad I killed him like I did.”

“What happened, anyway? I’ve never seen you get like that before,” the green-haired man questioned gently.

“I lost control… Back home, decades ago, I…I had a curse mark placed on the back of my neck that enhances my strength…but I lose control in exchange,” the silver dragon mumbled. “It’s why my pupils are visible, too. With each loss of control, they’ve slowly gotten more visible. Otherwise you wouldn’t see them. It was part of our acute evolution. Our kind adapted quickly to be smaller so we could still have plenty of food sources without a risk of famine, and our armor replaced scales because it’s more durable and better suited in a fight. The lack of visible pupils is so opponents and enemies can’t track where we’re looking to target a weak point or find one.”

“How’d you get a curse mark placed?” Mark inquired, confused.

“Unfortunately, like with the stories among humans, some dragons also dabbled in dark, blood, and death magic, and it taints the spirit,” Shadow explained with a sigh. “They want to figure out ways to be stronger and conquer fights more easily, but they change in the process. They become a different person. The one who placed the curse mark was a resurrected dragon, so he came back knowing dark magic and the like.”

“He used the curse mark to try and make me lose control so I would end up alone, but it didn’t work,” Night added bitterly. “I had already been scorned since I hatched because of my armor being silver, as no silver dragons had ever been heard of, not even when dragons all lived in the human world. So, our clans members hated me. It took a fucking near-death experience from them to force our leader’s hand at the time. He made it official that if anyone harmed me outside of practice fights, then they were to be punished or worse, depending on the case.”

“I still think the death Mother dealt the ones who almost killed you was a damn good way to instill fear in them,” Shadow grumbled.

“Your mother killed them?” Jack asked, surprised.

“Yeah. She was livid, and once she had ensured I would live, she tore them to shreds. She let me see with my telepathy after I recovered,” the silver dragon nodded.

“‘There is no greater warrior than a parent protecting their child’,” Shixona quoted as she joined them, setting a tray with three mugs of tea on it on the coffee table. “My parents used to tell me that when I would get picked on as a kid. It’s because I was bullied that Dad taught me how to use his katana while Father taught me how to fight.”

“It’s sad that you have to put it into practice like this, though,” Mark murmured.

“Better to have it than not,” the brunette shrugged. Night suddenly perked, though.

“Wait… Jack, you said that alpha earlier figured out you’re an omega. Does that mean…?”

“Yeah, everyone here knows now,” the Irishman smiled slightly. “I knew it was best to be honest.” Mark kissed his cheek when he finished speaking, making Jack blush.

“I’m really happy for you guys,” Shixona giggled. “You’re both good for each other. I know I haven’t known either of you long, but I just know you’re a good match for each other.”

“Maybe we should all rest up from the excitement,” Shadow suggested after a bit. “We’ll need the strength for later.”

“Agreed,” Obscurum nodded. “And Night?”

“Hm?”

“I’d like to get some insight on your curse mark, if possible,” she told him. “My interest and curiosity have been piqued by what you’ve said about it, and I’d like to learn a bit, if I may.”

“…If you really want to…” Night answered after a few seconds’ hesitation. “I can’t guarantee how…peaceful it’ll stay if you do, but…we can try.”

“I’ll be there to help calm you down, okay?” his brother assured him quickly. The silver dragon nodded, and then the group dispersed to get some sleep. The twins remained in the living room to alternate between keeping watch and sleeping, while Shixona and Obscurum went to the guest room and Jack followed Mark to his old bedroom.

The pair set their weapons by the bed, in a spot for quick and easy access, toed off their shoes, and while Jack took off his leather jacket, Mark climbed into the bed, settling under the comforter. The green-haired man joined him shortly after, sliding in and snuggling close to Mark’s chest.

“Comfy?” the alpha chuckled, wrapping his arms around him.

“Yeah,” Jack smiled softly, purring quietly as he relaxed. “G’night, Mark…”

“Goodnight, Jack. See you in the morning,” Mark whispered, nuzzling his hair and inhaling deeply before they both fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH!!! Something I incorporate in my A/B/O fics now, btw, is alphas can rumble as a signature sound for them, and it can be out of anger, to soothe/calm, and to show happiness/pleasure. Omegas purr, and it's the same concept as an alpha's rumble, minus it being out of anger.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I got some comments on the last update about Night’s vicious attack on that alpha he killed. I explained it in my replies, but I figured I’d explain further here. Night has ALWAYS been extremely protective of those he cares about. If you’ve earned his trust, you have a guaranteed guardian/protector for life. However, he doesn’t trust easily because of his history (mentioned in chapter 4 about his near-death). He was also shunned by his entire clan from the moment he hatched, with the exception of Shadow, their mother, and their mentor. He’s also as fierce and powerful as he is because he dedicated himself to training and becoming stronger so as to prove he wasn’t weak or useless. Because of that, Night surpassed everyone in his age group in his skills and strength. He was guaranteeing that, even if he didn’t have protection by clan law, he would be able to defend himself and throw what he took back.  
> But if anyone wants to learn more about Night and/or Shadow, or any of my OC’s, don’t hesitate to ask! I’m more than happy to answer questions~

When morning arrived, Jack grumbled when he could hear noise from outside the bedroom door. Instead of even trying to rouse himself, he curled closer to the warmth along his back, sighing quietly. He felt warmth along his waist tighten in response, and he vaguely remembered he’d slept in Mark’s hold last night.

“Jack!” Shixona’s voice called, muffled through the door. It sounded like she was right outside the room. The omega whined into the pillow, not wanting to face the day yet. “Come on, time to get up!”

“Unless it’s a matter of life or death, let me sleep…” Jack groaned. The noise was starting to wake Mark up, the alpha rumbling behind him, disgruntled.

“Jack, she found coffee in the cabinet, and I told her you like coffee, so she’s got a cup here for you,” Night chuckled. The green-haired man grumbled again.

“Why do ya have ta blackmail me?” he complained.

“We’re not,” the beta laughed. “Better not be naked, ‘cause I’m opening the door!” And then she did just that.

“Shixona!” Jack yelped, sitting up quickly. He pouted at her giggle, but accepted the offered coffee cup.

“Hey, I warned you!” the brunette snickered. “Morning, by the way!”

“Morning…” Mark yawned as he sat up, grunting as he stretched.

“How long have you been up fer?” the Irishman asked after taking a few sips of his coffee.

“A few hours by now,” Shixona shrugged. “I’ve been a natural early bird for years. Come on, Obscurum caught breakfast this morning while the twins slept.”

“Wait, but…who kept watch, then?” Jack frowned.

“Who do ya think?” Anti snorted from the doorway. “Dark and I emerged while you two were passed out.”

“Thanks for that,” Mark said, yawning again before sliding out of bed. While he helped Jack out of bed, Shixona, Night, and Anti left out to the main area. He then pecked Jack’s lips briefly as he led him out by the hand.

Although surprised by the kiss, the omega couldn’t help but smile as he felt warmth in his chest. He didn’t know if it was him just enjoying the affectionate touches, or because it was Mark, but either way, he liked it. Because of that, he tucked himself into the larger man’s side, purring quietly.

“You like to cuddle, huh?” Mark chuckled softly as he held him close.

“Dunno. Never been in any sorta relationship before,” Jack replied.

“Well, I’m not complaining.”

“Good. You shouldn’t.”

“You guys are too fucking adorable together,” Shixona laughed lightly when she brought plates to the table for them. “You’re diabetes-inducing cute.”

“Shut up,” the Irishman muttered, blushing brightly as he took a bite of his breakfast. “I’m not cute.”

“I beg to differ,” Mark chuckled, grinning at Jack’s pout.

“No need for a lover’s quarrel,” the beta teased. “Hey, how about this: we all played video games before this bullshit, so what were some games you were looking forward to?”

“For me, it was Doom 2016,” the alpha answered, gaining a fond look in his eyes as he smiled. “My dad introduced me to Doom when I was younger, and I was really looking forward to this year’s release because of my dad.”

“That’s too cool~” Shixona smiled. “What about you, Jack?”

“I’d seen and played a bit of Subnautica durin’ it’s early access time before all this, and I really liked it, despite gettin’ scared shitless when I got into the deeper areas,” Jack replied. “I was surprised when I saw the Sea Dragon, though. It had tentacles instead of a single tail, which was different.”

“Fuck that,” Night snorted from the top of a bookshelf in the corner. “A proper sea dragon should be serpentine in appearance. It makes for more ease of movement in the water.”

“Inber doesn’t look like that, though,” Shadow piped up from where he perched on the back of an armchair. “He looks like us, just ocean blue in color since he’s Sapphire Clan’s leader,” he added, looking at the others.

“But he also doesn’t live strictly in water. Their clan can be on land or in water with equal comfort,” his brother added. “My point is that a dragon that resides solely in water should appear serpentine.” With a huff, he muttered, “But I have no control over how people design shit, so whatever.”

“I’d agree with that design,” Shixona nodded thoughtfully. “The game I was looking forward to in late November was Final Fantasy XV. I’m a JRPG lover~”

“Hey, they’re good games,” Jack chuckled.

“Oh yeah, do you think you’ll be up to training today, Mark?” the beta asked, finishing her breakfast.

“Yeah, it’d be best to get started on that,” the red-haired man agreed. “I don’t want to be a liability for you guys…”

“You’ll be fine,” the Irishman assured him. “I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it quickly.”

“And since you’re able to wield your sword without it being too heavy, that’ll really help,” Shixona added.

“Would you mind if I learned more about your curse mark today, Night?” Obscurum requested, appearing through a shadow portal from somewhere else.

“As long as no one gets hurt in the process, then that’s fine,” Night nodded, looking at her.

“Remember, I’ll be with you and help where I can,” Shadow soothed, looking up at him. His twin nodded minutely, closing his eyes again.

“What should we do, then?” Jack frowned.

“Maybe you and Anti could scout the area? See if anyone or anything seems suspicious in the vicinity,” Shixona suggested.

“Then what about Dark?” Anti questioned, quirking a brow.

“He may as well come with, otherwise he’d be reverted,” the brunette shrugged. “It doesn’t hurt to have the extra protection, after all.”

“If I must,” Dark mumbled. That earned him a stern glare and low growl from Obscurum.

“After yesterday’s events, I would insist upon it myself,” she said coolly. “I would rather your attempts at apathy not result in losing reliable allies in the upcoming fight.”

“Point taken…” the aura-wielding demon muttered.

Jack noticed Anti’s mismatched eyes roll in annoyance, but he could detect the faint hurt from the glitch demon. He knew, based on what Anti had told him before about their bond and whatnot, that the two demons should feel something for each other, like Jack and Mark do, but it was impossible to tell at this point. Anti was already feeling something for Dark, but Dark was much more difficult to read.

A mental nudge from Night had him nodding discreetly, and he felt the connection as it formed.

‘ _What’s on your mind?_ ’ he asked.

‘ _I’m fine, all things considered, just worried about Anti,_ ’ the omega replied, and then explained what Anti had told him before about the connection they have.

‘ _Interesting…_ ’ the silver dragon hummed. ‘ _Would you like me to investigate?_ ’

‘ _If you can manage it without him noticin’, yeah,_ ’ Jack agreed. ‘ _But don’t tell Anti, no matter what you find out._ ’

‘ _I gotcha._ ’

With that said, Night ended the connection, and Jack continued chatting idly with the others until their link reconnected.

‘ _I’m rather impressed, let me start there,_ ’ the dragon started.

‘ _Hm?_ ’

‘ _His level of protectiveness is almost as great as mine. I haven’t encountered that in a long time._ ’

‘ _How come he isn’t showin’ it, then?_ ’

‘ _I got a good feel for who he is as an individual while in his mind,_ ’ Night began. ‘ _He’s very stoic, like me, but to a greater degree. He’s…particular of who he cares about, again, like me. I got a strong flicker of his feelings rising to the surface while checking, so I’m certain he’ll come around soon enough._ ’

‘ _What might help?_ ’

‘ _The right motivation, such as Anti in danger, but we can’t do that to him,_ ’ the silver reptile answered.

‘ _Definitely not. Guess we’ll have ta leave it fer now…_ ’ Jack sighed.

‘ _It’ll be fine, try not to worry so much,_ ’ Night chuckled softly, before ending the connection.

‘ _Easier said than done…_ ’ the Irishman thought to himself, glancing briefly at Anti.

Once the group finished their breakfasts, they all parted into their respective groups, Shadow and Night following Obscurum off to an area a good distance away to keep their work safely away from the others. Shixona and Mark went to train in the backyard, but not before the alpha hugged Jack and kissed his forehead.

“Be careful out there, okay?” he murmured against the younger man’s hairline.

“I will. Helps that Anti and Dark will be with me,” Jack assured him. Although Mark still seemed a bit hesitant, he let the omega go and joined Shixona to practice.

Despite their initial agreement that they would take some time to rest and mentally recover, the aspect of training and practicing with his sword seemed to be a good distraction for Mark. So, Jack wasn’t too worried about him not focusing.

Hooking his crossbow on his back in the holder and holstering his handguns, Jack headed out with Anti and Dark, slipping his grey cap on as he went. There was a chilly breeze in the air as they went, making the Irishman hunch his shoulders with a light shiver. Hopefully it wouldn’t rain…or snow.

“Doesn’t feel like a storm’s comin’ in…” Anti commented with a light frown, flanking Jack on his right as he gazed at the grey skies. “Guess we’ll have ta be more careful…”

“Maybe it’s not a thunderstorm, then,” Dark hummed, following behind them from a short distance away.

“If it snows, I’m not sure how the snow here will be,” Jack murmured, thankful the trees covered them and blocked their view of the sky as they went. “In Ireland, it was more sleet or really wet, slush-like snow, which sucked.”

“We’ll just have to keep mind of the weather and the time, then,” Dark replied. “Can’t afford to get caught in whatever comes at nighttime.”

The omega gave a soft noise of acknowledgement so the demon didn’t think he was being ignored, but knew it was a valid point. Even if it snowed and the snow stuck, it wouldn’t be ideal for trekking back in the dark. If the moon reflected on it, it might give some illumination, but not enough to see properly.

Jack popped his collar on his jacket up a few hours into their scouting, a small shiver running through him from the chill. Anti glanced over at him, his brow furrowed in worry, but the green-haired man shook his head minutely, wordlessly assuring him he was fine.

Then the glitch demon stopped in his tracks, seeming to listen closely.

“…You guys hear that?” he asked, and even Dark was confused.

“No, I don’t hear anythin’,” Jack frowned.

“What do you hear?” Dark inquired coolly. There was an undertone of suspicion in his voice, making the Irishman raise his guard.

“I don’t know how to describe it…” Anti mumbled, before heading off to the side, in a direction they hadn’t gone yet. Both his human partner and Dark exchanged a brief look before following, each of them puzzled.

When they crested a small rise, Jack realized what Anti was hearing. The glitch demon was quickly making his way to a shack with what looked like a cell phone tower next to it, but the omega could tell it was transmitting EMP waves. Those would short Anti out, or worse, kill him if they were strong enough.

“Fuck!” he cursed. “Dark, stop him! That’s an EMP tower! It could kill ‘im!!”

The aura-wielding demon’s eyes widened in horror, before he bolted after Anti. He grabbed his arm, but Anti struggled, still trying to get to the tower. It seemed it was also giving off some sort of frequency that only Anti could hear, and it was luring him in.

Jack ran down to decline, trying to hurry to the tower to destroy it. As he ran, he loaded some bullets with electrical shells in his handguns, ones he and Night had come up with. They had made some different elemental bullets, only to be used when needed. This was _definitely_ one of those times.

“Hold him back! I’m gonna destroy that tower!” he yelled as he passed the two demons. It faintly registered that snow was already falling and sticking while he rushed to the tower, but he didn’t care at the moment. He was focused on reaching the short fence by the shack that bordered it, that way he was close enough to get a few shots at the tower with the electric bullets.

Sliding to his knees at the fence, the green-haired man took aim, despite the shouts he could hear from Anti slowly approaching from behind. His demon sounded pained and frustrated, but it seemed like Dark was slowing him well enough. He got two shots in, both weakening the tower significantly, but as he went to fire the third, he jolted when a pained cry from Dark got his attention.

“He cut me!!” the older demon bellowed. “Just shoot the tower, or he’ll reach it!!”

Jack had almost no time, but whipped around and fired, hoping his instincts helped make the shot. When the sound of the bullet striking the steel tower rung out, followed by the electricity crackling over its frame, the omega sighed in relief. But his relief was short-lived, as Anti tackled him to the ground with a snarl.

“ ** _WhY dId YoU sToP iT?!_** ” he shrieked, his voice distorting drastically, and his black-painted nails were lengthened, digging into Jack’s upper arms through his leather jacket. They pierced into his skin, drawing a scream from the human.

“ANTI, **STOP!!** ”

The knife-wielding demon was slammed off of Jack by Dark, and it seemed to clear his mind enough to realize what he’d done. His expression instantly became horrified, and he scrambled over to the Irishman in a panic.

“I’m so sorry!” he cried, his hands hovering over him as though hesitant to touch him. Jack shook his head slightly through the pain, trying to assure him he wasn’t mad.

“Revert, Anti. You’ll both recover faster that way,” Dark coaxed him, placing a hand on his shoulder. Biting his lip, Anti nodded before doing just that. Jack exhaled shakily as he felt his demon’s energy already working on healing his wounds, and managed to sit up.

‘ _I’m not mad at you, Anti, I promise,_ ’ he soothed the glitch demon. ‘ _I’m just glad you’re okay. Those EMP waves could have killed you._ ’

‘ ** _I shouldn’t have hurt you at all, though…_** ’ Anti mumbled. ‘ ** _Now you’re hurt, and it’s my fault…_** ’

‘ _I’d rather this than you end up dead,_ ’ Jack replied. ‘ _Just focus on healin’ the wounds and restin’ for now._ ’ He waited for Anti to do just that, feeling his presence settle into sleep before looking at Dark.

“I presume he’s resting now?” the aura-wielding demon guessed.

“Yeah,” the omega nodded, pushing up onto his knees and standing up. “We’d better head back…” Dark nodded minutely, and they made their way back to the house in silence. It was only when they got about a half a mile away from the house that Jack broke it.

“…You really care about him, don’t you?” he asked quietly. Although it was subtle, Dark’s shoulders tensed at the question.

“…”

“He explained that he and I feel similarly to you and Mark because you and him look like Mark and me, accordin’ to the Demon Lord,” the Irishman murmured. “He’s worried that you somehow don’t feel the same because you don’t show it…”

“…I feel the same, but…”

“You’re not a very emotionally-expressive individual,” Jack guessed.

“Correct…” Dark sighed quietly. “Many demons aren’t by nature. The Demon Lord and Obscurum are slight exceptions. They’ve shown their fondness for some, the biggest example being the Demon Lord for Obscurum by taking her in as her pupil, but mated pairs are incredibly rare. Especially ever since demons were reborn instead of created.”

“Based on what’s been shared, though, you two seem meant for each other, in a way,” the green-haired man pointed out. “At least try. He’s hurtin’ emotionally from you hidin’ it, but with how you stopped him earlier, tryin’ to keep him from gettin’ hurt and even hurtin’ me, showed that you care much more than you let on. Just please talk to him when he’s out next.”

“…” The ashen-skinned demon was quiet at that, but nodded softly in agreement.

When they returned to the house, Mark and Shixona appeared to be taking a break, both seated on the front porch and talking casually. However, the alpha seemed to notice much sooner than Jack expected that something was wrong.

“What happened?” he almost demanded, getting to his feet and watching Jack closely. Shixona watched them from where she sat with a concerned frown.

“…” Dark was unnaturally quiet, even for him, and kept his gaze firmly to the ground.

“We found a tower emittin’ EMP waves, which could have badly hurt, if not kill, Anti, and Dark held him back from bein’ lured in while I destroyed the tower,” Jack explained softly. “Once it was destroyed, Anti went berserk and tried to attack me, but Dark shoved him off and snapped him out of it…”

“…Is that why you have small holes in your jacket?” Mark questioned, and was easy to tell he was trying to contain just how upset he was about what had happened.

“Yeah… Anti was focusin’ on healin’ the wounds while we were comin’ back,” the omega murmured. “He feels _awful_ , Mark. You wouldn’t know the level of guilt he’s experiencin’ unless he was reverted in you…”

The red-haired man sighed heavily, before pulling Jack into a firm hug. “…I’m just glad you’re okay,” he whispered into the green locks.

“Let’s call it a day,” Shixona piped up from her seat. “No use in draining ourselves more than we should. Especially with snow starting to fall.”

“Wait, what?” Mark uttered, confused, before seeming to notice the chill. “Aww, fuck…”

“Guess you were too focused on Jack to realize,” the beta teased lightly. “C’mon, boys. I’ll get some sort of snack going while we wait for the other three to come back.”

The couple followed after, Mark holding Jack close to his side, even as Dark reverted to his partner’s mind. While Shixona scrounged around in the kitchen for something to eat, the larger man laid down on the couch, letting Jack rest on top of him. His rumble was calming, soothing the Irishman as he closed his eyes, drifting almost into sleep.

“He’s pretty drained, huh?” their beta friend commented quietly as she joined them. Her voice was fading in and out as Jack dozed, simply too tired to move otherwise.

“I don’t blame him. Everything’s been all sorts of stressful lately…” Mark sighed, and he briefly tightened his hold on the green-haired man.

“Definitely…” Shixona agreed.

After a few minutes of quiet, she spoke up again. “When are you going to tell him your rut is going to happen soon?”

“…!” Mark tensed sharply beneath Jack, clearly shocked by the question. “How did you…?”

“I’ve already said my sense of smell is sharper than the average beta’s, and sometimes even an alpha’s or omega’s. It shouldn’t be too surprising that I can tell when an alpha’s rut is approaching,” the brunette murmured. Jack was far too exhausted to try and respond or add anything to the conversation, but he was hearing them. Even if their voices _were_ fading in and out in volume because of how tired he was.

“…”

“You and I both know full well he needs to know, especially before you go completely alpha on him and the poor guy being confused and scared by it,” she continued. “I won’t lecture you, but just keep him in mind.”

“…Right…” Mark mumbled, gently carding a hand through the smaller man’s hair. The loving touch seemed to be all it took to finally make Jack drift fully off into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, so, I don’t agree with the design for the Sea Dragon in Subnautica. Fight me! …No, don’t, I’m a baby about it. Anyhoo, I would have preferred a more serpentine look than the tentacled version they made. Also, my dragons all have prehensile tails, like monkeys, and they use them for more than just climbing. Fighting, trapping, ensnaring, etc. And when I say fighting, I mean like a whip more than anything, but can be used in other ways.


	6. Chapter 6

Jack woke up to a musky aroma that was mixed with Mark’s natural scent, but he didn’t open his eyes, instead humming contently as he nuzzled his face into the alpha’s chest. He could tell they were in the bedroom again, with Mark holding him close to his chest in his sleep. As he laid there, though, the memory of Mark and Shixona’s conversation the day prior while he’d been on the brink of sleep resurfaced, and he paused.

He knew what rut was. Most of his siblings had been alphas, with only one beta sister, and he’d been witness to the start of their ruts before he’d been found to be an omega. The Irishman was pretty fucking nervous, to say the least, if Mark couldn’t contain himself, and Jack got caught in the proverbial crosshairs.

Granted, if he were in heat, things would be different, but he was still on suppressant injections, so that wouldn’t happen. He absolutely wanted Mark’s claim when they agreed to have their cycles together, there was no denying that, and even have their child together whenever this whole deal was over with. Right now, the timing was horrible, but later on…that would be different.

The musky scent he’d woken up to became slightly stronger, and Jack bit back the quiet moan that wanted to escape in response. This was bad. He wasn’t even sure how close Mark’s rut was to actually hitting, but it was already starting to affect the green-haired man.

“Mmm… Jack?” the alpha mumbled, opening his eyes to look down at the omega. Jack was already almost completely buried under the blanket, only the top of his head actually visible from Mark’s view, but he didn’t know if the red-haired man would be able to see the effect his scent was having on Jack.

“Hey, you okay?” Mark asked, moving the blanket to get a better look at Jack’s face.

“…Are you…really goin’ into rut?” the smaller man questioned quietly. He’d been hesitant to ask, but he needed to know for sure.

Mark tensed sharply against him, before exhaling roughly. “Yeah…” he admitted. “I don’t want to hurt you at all, so I’ll stay away…”

“I’ve seen the start of ruts with most of my siblings, so I kinda know what to expect, but I’m grateful you’re willin’ to keep some distance for me,” Jack smiled slightly, kissing the red-haired man briefly.

“Anything for you, Jackaboy,” Mark chuckled.

“Later on…after this is all over…” the omega started to say, blushing, “I’d like to sync our cycles…and wear your claim.”

“You mean that?” the alpha breathed, his eyes wide.

“Yeh,” Jack nodded with a shy smile. “You’re the only alpha I want.” Mark grinned and kissed him softly, before they sat up with a grunt. “We’d best get up before Shixona does…”

“Right…” the larger man agreed. As they got out of bed, Mark growled a little at the cold. “Not used to snow this early in the season…”

“I like this kind over the wet shit and sleet in Ireland,” the omega chuckled. As he started to follow Mark out, yawning, he realized Anti wasn’t still reverted. ‘ _Hopefully he and Dark got to talk…_ ’

When they got out to the living room, Shixona was making some breakfast, Obscurum leaning against the wall in a dark corner, just watching. Night was curled up on the armchair, Shadow sitting with him, merely keeping him company. Dark and Anti were nowhere to be seen, but Shadow looked up at their arrival.

“Night got worn out pretty good yesterday during Obscurum’s studying,” he explained. “Dark and Anti went out to the backyard a couple hours ago, and it seems like they’re still talking.”

‘ _Thank fuck…_ ’ Jack thought in relief.

“Thanks for the update,” Mark told his dragon partner gratefully.

“Morning, boys,” Shixona chimed from the kitchen. “You’re right on time, because I just finished breakfast.”

“Good thing, cuz I’m starvin’,” Jack sighed happily. “I feel like my stomach might start tryin’ ta eat itself.”

“I highly doubt that’d happen, but I’m glad to remedy that,” the brunette snickered. Jack could see Obscurum in his peripheral watching him intently, but he ignored it.

The couple sat down, Mark pressing a chaste kiss to hisJack’s temple, but when Shixona went to set a plate in front of Jack, the alpha gave a low growl, almost in warning.

“Mark, stop it,” the beta snapped. “I’m no threat, now chill.”

The red-haired man quieted, giving an apologetic look, even as he was given his plate. Jack couldn’t help the spike of nervousness he’d felt when Mark had growled, despite knowing it was because of his impending rut.

“I know his rut’s comin’, Shixona,” he murmured, just so she was aware he was in the loop.

“Good. Just gotta be mindful of who you react to, Markimoo,” the brunette smirked. “None of us are a threat to you or Jack.”

“I know that logically… Just instinctual…” the older man sighed.

“It’s whatever. I just don’t want you to get pissed off with me if I correct you,” Shixona shrugged, sitting down with her own food. A small groan sounded from Night, drawing their attention.

“I feel like I got crushed by a boulder…” he grumbled, yawning tiredly.

“You _were_ exhausted after that whole deal, so I’m not surprised,” Shadow replied sympathetically.

“Still…” his brother muttered. He then perked a little. “Is there more snow than last night?”

“Yup. About a half a foot, and it’s good stuff to have fun in,” the black dragon grinned.

“Really? The snow’s that deep out there?” Mark whined.

“Guess you need to be shown how to have some proper fun in the snow,” Shixona grinned. “And your Colorado native will gladly show you~!”

“I only dealt with the wet shit and sleet in Ireland, but after leavin’, I got to see the proper snow,” Jack chuckled. “Never got to play around, though. Was too busy killin’ angels.”

“This should be fun, then,” Night smirked.

As they ate and chatted, Jack looked up quickly when he heard the back door open, and saw Anti and Dark coming inside, the former keeping himself tucked into the latter’s side. The glitch demon seemed content, more so than Jack had ever seen him before, and the omega knew the two had talked and been honest.

“Doin’ better now?” he asked kindly.

“Much,” Anti nodded. He sat with Dark in the corner, where less light reached them.

“How are you guys not freezing your asses off??” Mark gawked.

“Demons don’t get cold,” Obscurum chuckled. “Hell’s flames fill our souls and keep us warm.”

“Fun way to put it,” the alpha laughed.

“Well, if you’re all finished chatting and eating, let’s go outside!” Shadow urged eagerly. He yipped when Night flicked the back of his head with a snort.

“Easy, let ‘em fill up so they don’t get hungry while out there,” the silver dragon chided.

“I’m done, actually, so I’m ready to go out there,” Jack shrugged, taking his empty plate to the sink. Mark was right behind him, and snagged his hoodie from the hall closet as well as Jack’s leather jacket while the omega grabbed their shoes and his cap.

“Oh fuck yeah, this is awesome!!” Shixona crowed when she looked outside. “I think we got a couple more inches since the last check!”

“Fuck…” Mark whined.

“You’ll be fine, Markimoo~” Jack giggled while zipping up his jacket. “Night and Shadow will help keep us warm with their magic.”

When they stepped outside, the Irishman gained an awed expression. He hadn’t seen snow like this except in Christmas movies.

Night and Shadow bounded out into the cold first, but landed on their own ice tracks they created before they could hit the snow.

“Jack, c’mon!” Night called. “There’s a spot nearby you can sled down!”

“Really? Awesome!” the green-haired man grinned, hurrying after while tugging Mark along by the hand. Faintly, he heard Anti’s giggle, but he knew the demon was just amused by his excitement.

“Hey, easy!” Shadow warned, snapping his jaws briefly when the alpha growled at the dragon’s approach. Mark stopped immediately, a sheepish look on his face. Jack ignored the split-second nervous spike in response, just focusing on following his own dragon.

When they crested a rise through some trees, the omega was horrified to see it dropped sharply into a vertical cliff.

“Night, don’t you fuckin’ dare. Don’t even…!” he pleaded with the silver dragon, who was backing up to the tree line. He knew damn well what he was planning, and was _not_ keen about it

“Too late!” he cackled, dashing forward and grabbing Jack, shifting to a larger size and swiftly situating him on his back while launching himself off the ledge. Jack shrieked in panic as he threw his arms around Night’s neck to ensure he wouldn’t fall, squeezing his eyes shut tight.

“Fuckin’ dammit, Night!! You _know_ I’m terrified of heights!!” Jack squealed.

“Yes, but you’re always good after taking off,” was the cheeky reply. The omega grumbled irritably when he managed to calm down as Night continued to fly.

“Hate when you’re right…” he muttered.

“So you say.”

Jack looked down to where Mark was watching, frowning when he saw the alpha’s expression almost appeared half-crazed with worry over Jack.

“His rut must be closer than we expected,” the silver dragon murmured, noticing his friend’s reaction. The Irishman didn’t reply, merely focusing on the sensation on flying on Night’s back. It was relaxing to fly like this, once they were steady. Sometimes Jack wished he had his own wings to fly on his own, but that wasn’t possible at all.

“I’m gonna land,” Night said suddenly. “He looks like he’s about to freak out, and badly.”

“Should I even get close to him?” Jack frowned.

“Yes, but be careful. We’ll watch him closely, too, just in case, but use caution.”

His dragon began to descend, and the green-haired man could easily see Mark visibly calming as they got closer. As soon as Jack was safely standing on the ground again, he was swiftly tackled in a tight hug by the alpha, startling a gasp out of him. He hugged Mark back comfortingly, but tensed up when the larger man let out a warning snarl when both dragons approached.

The sound made Jack stiffen, before he felt a burst of heat flood him, a familiar feeling he hadn’t had in years overcoming him. A submissive whine slipped from his throat as he tightened his hold on Mark, and the tension around them skyrocketed.

‘ _I can’t be in heat! How the fuck?!_ ’ Jack panicked for all of five seconds, before Mark gathered him up in his arms, keeping him close to his chest to hide him from view of the others. The omega knew Mark’s rut was in full swing now, based on his behavior and strong, musky, spicy scent, and it had to have triggered his own heat in response. There was no stopping this without someone getting hurt.

A quiet whimper escaped Jack, and the alpha rumbled, low and deep in his chest, before rushing back to the house and making a beeline for their room. The Irishman purred eagerly when Mark pressed him into the mattress, still holding him firmly by the waist and burying his face in the crook of Jack’s neck, inhaling deeply. This was followed by a low moan, and Jack gave an involuntary squeak when he felt a lick along his scent gland, making him shiver.

“Mine…” the alpha growled against the pale skin, drawing a keen from the green-haired man. Jack arched into Mark as he became hotter, his arousal increasing with the warmth he felt. That caused the red-haired man to grunt before pulling back and start stripping their clothes off.

He started pulling off his own clothes first, being sure to kick off his shoes, too, while Jack quickly squirmed out of his. When he noticed Mark had stopped moving, though, he glanced up to see the alpha watching him with a heated, ravenous gaze. The omega whined at the look, reaching for the larger man with grabby hands.

Mark rumbled as he quickly pulled Jack to him, kissing him fiercely with a growl. Jack wasted no time in parting his lips for his alpha, moaning heavily when Mark slid his tongue alongside the smaller man’s own. The Irishman could faintly tell he was gripping Mark’s biceps tightly, probably to the point of bruising, but it just made the red-haired man groan throatily.

Jack broke away with a startled moan when he felt a hot hand wrap around his cock, and he fell back against the pillows with a pleasured cry, thrusting into Mark’s grip. Mewls escaped him when Mark kissed, licked, and nipped up his body, moving from his hips to his stomach, then to his chest, where he teased his nipples, then his throat and neck, before capturing his lips in another hot kiss.

The green-haired man clawed at the alpha’s shoulders, whimpering loudly when he felt slick begin to leak from his ass, trickling down between his thighs, even as Mark stroked him slowly with a highly pleased rumble sounding in his chest. As Jack sought purchase by scrabbling at the red-haired man’s shoulders, his fingers pressed against Mark’s scent gland, causing him to shudder harshly as his hand stuttered in its motions.

Jack keened pleadingly, desperate for his alpha’s knot, needing him so badly his whole body ached horribly. Distressed tears formed in his eyes when Mark pulled away, but then he bit his lip as he watched the larger man nudge his legs further apart before lining up with the omega’s slick, wet hole. Jack’s breathing hitched sharply when he felt the head of Mark’s cock press against his rim, before quickly leaning up and wrapping his arms around the alpha’s neck, pulling him close right as Mark rolled his hips forward, burying himself to the hilt in one smooth thrust.

The Irishman choked on his next breath, clenching involuntarily at the sensation of being so _full_. His legs came up to wrap around Mark’s waist, pulling him in just a bit deeper, and making the red-haired man growl. With a brief nip to Jack’s earlobe, Mark withdrew until just the head of his cock was still inside, then slammed back in, striking the omega’s prostate with the first thrust.

Blinding pleasure crashed through him in an instant, causing an ecstasy-filled scream to tear out of the smaller man’s chest and throat. Jack dug his nails into Mark’s back, scratching him as the alpha continued to thrust into him hard and deep, nailing his prostate with each one. The green-haired man moaned and mewled, feeling his release approaching far too soon for his liking. And he could feel Mark’s knot still wasn’t formed enough to actually knot him yet.

Combined with the teasing from before, the alpha’s powerful thrusts had Jack releasing between them with a gasping cry, his cum coating their stomachs as he tightened around Mark’s cock. Mark grunted and his hips stuttered in their movements, the larger man burying his face in the crook of Jack’s neck as he gasped for breath. However, he didn’t stop moving completely, switching to deep, smooth rolls of his hips that had the omega whining and whimpering from overstimulation.

When Jack felt Mark’s knot starting to catch on his rim, he got the alpha’s attention by lightly nipping at his scent gland, making Mark pull back a bit to look at him. The Irishman tilted his head to expose his own scent gland more to the red-haired man, giving him a desperate, pleading look.

“Mark me…please…” he whispered, and was satisfied when he saw a pleased gleam flash in Mark’s eyes. The alpha wasted no time, pressing his lips to the smaller man’s scent gland again, licking it briefly before sinking his teeth in, claiming him.

Jack cried out at the sharp jolt of pleasure that coursed through him from the marking, making him cum and clench tightly around Mark right as his knot pushed past his rim. Mark growled fiercely before pulling away again to expose his own scent gland for Jack. The omega latched on, marking his alpha as Mark slammed in one last time and came, knotting him and tying them together.

Both men were shaking from the intensity of their bonding, but Jack began to purr contently beneath Mark, heavily satisfied. His alpha’s rumbling had returned, extremely pleased as he held Jack close. Mark gasped before he came again, his hips canting into the green-haired man and filling him more. Jack mewled at the blooming heat, licking Mark’s jawline as he purred louder.

“Jack…” Mark groaned out, clenching his jaw as he came again, and Jack gave a startled noise when he felt his belly becoming slightly distended just from the sheer volume of cum Mark was filling him with.

“‘m sorry… I never…did anything during…my ruts before…” the larger man panted, grunting as he came _again_ , making his omega whine quietly when his belly swelled more.

“S’okay…” Jack breathed, despite feeling a little bit of cum leaking past Mark’s slowly shrinking knot.

Well, that certainly explained how Mark was already filling him so much. An alpha in rut felt a powerful need to breed an omega, and if Mark never did anything, even masturbate, during his ruts, then his body would compensate now that he finally _did_ have an omega to breed.

“Gonna…breed you so full…” Mark grunted, burying himself in as deep as he could as he came one last time…then stilled. “I love you… _so_ much…”

“Love you…too…” the omega mumbled, exhaustion rapidly setting in. He snuggled against his alpha’s warm body as best as he could, considering how they were stuck together, and kissed the larger man’s tan neck softly before yawning.

“Rest up, Jackaboy…” Mark hummed, nuzzling Jack’s cheek before kissing it and settling down to sleep. It took no time at all before the newly-bonded couple plunged into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've had a lot of snow here lately, hence me wanting a snow day chapter, to a degree. Don't worry, they'll get a proper chance to have some snow fun together, I promise~! And of course, as usual, I can't help but rush shit because my excitement gets the better of me. XD

**Author's Note:**

> OH MY GOD, I didn't expect to be so hyper-fixated on getting this idea down and written up to the point that I finished in one day. I literally thought this idea up less than 12 hours before posting this first chapter. Updates will be (unfortunately) slow, but that's because I'm working 5 days this week, and my one day off, Thursday, has most of the morning reserved for my next Crohn's treatment. But I'll do what I can when I can. Thank you!


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